HRT and breast cancer

Romla

https://apple.news/A0skSrbECTvOPoVeC_uJ0IQ

https://apple.news/AMjF41na6TZ6Gx32TI3L9yw

It doesn’t change my diagnosis but worthwhile knowing and talking to others about.

Glynnis

I was taking HRT then 8 months later got diagnosed with breast cancer, stop immediately, thinking back wished I'd never taken it, as far as I'm concern it feed my hormone receptive cancer, maybe it would have come along at some stage I don't know just wish I had never taken it. My mum took it for 20 plus years without any problems, think she was one of the lucky ones.

Romla

@Glynnis I was on HRT - high oestrogen patches a few years in my 40s diagnosed with breast cancer 15 years later and feel the same.

June1952

Ditto above comments !!!  I was on it for 8 mths many years prior to diagnosis but feel the same.  Doctors did not have much clue then.

arpie

I was on HRT cream for 6  months when I had a bad reading & was told to attend John Hunter Hospital in Newcastle for more exhaustive tests - they reckoned it was the testosterone component in the cream that gave the abnormal breast readings..... I stopped taking it the day I got the callback & 4 weeks later, the next screening came back 'normal'.  That was about 10 years ago.  Then my GP found the lump in Nov '17 ..... 

Kattykit

I never took HRT  and never took birth control pills either because I was scared about getting cancer, yet here I am stage 4, as far  as I'm concerned it's just the luck of the draw.

primek

I never took HRT because if family history. I do think peri-menopause hormone fluctuations probably triggered mine. 

Annie C

I did not take HRT, however my older sister did, for over 10 years. I got Breast Cancer, my sister did not.

I agree with @Kattykit, it is luck of the draw.

Romla

I thought the  research just says it increases risk of breast cancer not that you will get definitely get breast cancer so yes luck of the draw comes into it.

arpie

At the time I went on it, they were more concerned about it giving heart attacks - as there was major heart attack history in my family - but no breast cancer!  Go figure!!

From memory - they said something like only 2% of people would have bad reactions to the HRT - and that only 2% of THEM went on to develop heart attacks or Breast Cancer ...... I'm not sure what happened to the other 96% (of the 2%!)

JulieVT11

I had ovaries removed at about 48yo and was thrown straight into full on menopause and could not cope at all, was then put  on a fairly strong dose of HRT for 4.5 years then diagnosed with BC.  My surgeon and Onc say that the HRT had nothing to do with it but weirdly my GP said the opposite her comment was “every day I take HRT I am just feeding the cancer”.   

au0rei

Very old thread but...

Why would estrogen cause cancer?? We are needing this hormone since young. In fact when we get into menopause, the estrogen drops so much that we are more prone to problems especially with heart attacks, alzhemier's and osteoporosis. During menopause we get many awful symptoms because estrogen dips...The only cancer we are at risk with HRT is estrogen causes the thickening of our womb lining and if not shed it develops into uterine cancer. That is why with HRT we must take both estrogen as well as progesterone. I feel that HRT is greatly misunderstood, even amongst doctors there are conflicting and confusing opinions. Cancer starts with one cell so the cancer that some women think they got after starting HRT could be cancer that has been developing for many years even before commencing HRT.