Hormone Replacement Therapy and the Breast Cancer Diagnosis
There has been a lot of media attention on
hormone replacement therapy recently. Much of this has been negative reports trying to link the use of HRT with the development of cancer. As a result, researchers have been working hard to find out if there are cancer risks associated with HRT.
A
new study shows that there is very minimal increasing in breast cancer risks among people who use hormone replacement therapy. However, it points out that you might be more likely to get a false cancer diagnosis as a result of being on HRT.
"What this data does is emphasize that yes, the breast cancer risk is still there, but more importantly, instead of that low number of one in 1,000 getting breast cancer, one in 10 women are told they had an abnormal mammogram they'll have to deal with, and probably even more importantly, one in 25 women will have an otherwise avoidable breast biopsy." (source)
The most important thing that you can do for yourself at this time is to make sure that you are speaking openly with your doctor about your use of hormone replacement therapy. There are pros and cons to using it, as there are with any other kinds of medication. Discuss these with the medical professionals that know you best.
Question of the Day: Would you be inclined to get a second opinion on a breast cancer diagnosis if you were on HRT?photo link
