Postmenopausal hormone therapy and lung cancer

Abstract

The latest recommendations on postmenopausal hormone therapy (HT) stress the need first to evaluate the individual benefits and risks and to prescribe the well-informed patient only when the balance is most favorable. As a result of recent studies on the association of lung cancer with HT, this common malignancy was added to the list of potential serious adverse effects of HT. However, data show that estrogen alone does not carry a risk, whereas a combined estrogen + progestin (E + P) regimen may be associated with higher mortality in lung cancer patients. Women usually take HT in the early postmenopausal period and for several years only. No increase in risk was found in E + P users aged 50–59 years, nor for those who used HT for less than 5 years. The absolute numbers involved are in the order of less than one additional case of lung cancer in 1000 woman/years of hormone use.

Key words:

• POSTMENOPAUSE
• HORMONE THERAPY
• LUNG CANCER

Conflict of interest  The author reports no conflicts of interest. The author alone is responsible for the content and writing of the paper.

Source of funding  Nil.