Estrogen & Breast Cancer
Q: What is the relationship between estrogen
and breast cancer?
Dr. Donnica: Many women have heard that estrogen
causes breast cancer. This is one of the biggest fears among post-menopausal
women who could (but choose not to) take HRT, and it is simply not true. What
is true is that estrogen does play a role in the promotion (or accelerated growth)
of breast cancer. While there is one major study of 80,000 nurses that shows
that patients who took estrogen had a slightly increased risk of breast
cancer, other studies contradict that finding. The most interesting finding
may be one from a study of 42,000 women in Iowa concluding that there was no
difference in the survival rate from breast cancer in women on estrogen
compared to those on placebo. This study also concluded that a woman who took
estrogen and got breast cancer had an increased life expectancy of 2-3
years over a matched control who did not take estrogen and did not get breast
cancer.
Women who take HRT-and those who are considering it-should
realize that any prescription drug must go through the extensive Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) drug approval process to be on the market. Each estrogen
preparation has done so. There are more than 3,000 studies available regarding
estrogen's safety and efficacy, and many more are currently being conducted.
Ironically, the more we learn about estrogen, the more we learn about its additional
benefits as well as its risk profile.
Created: 9/28/2000  - Donnica Moore, M.D.
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... there was no
difference in the survival rate from breast cancer in women on estrogen
compared to those on placebo.
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