Estrogen receptor-positive cancer easier to treat, study says
December 16th, 2008 by Jennifer Walker-Journey
Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and its link to breast cancer and other serious conditions continue to make headlines. This week, U.S. News & World Report announced that women who take HRT and then get breast cancer are at lower risk of dying from their disease, according to a new study by the University of California-Irvine.
Years ago, HRT was the method-of-choice for most women to combat annoying menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes, moodiness, night sweats and decreased sexual desire. The therapy also was thought to offer other benefits, such as a lowered risk of heart disease and breast cancer.
However, the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) of 2002 changed popular opinion when it found that HRT greatly increased a woman’s risk of breast cancer, heart disease and other serious illnesses. Since then, HRT and its effects have continued to be a closely studied therapy.
University of California-Irvine senior statistician, Sarah F. Marshall, presented the findings of her study at the San Antonio (Texas) Breast Cancer Symposium. The study followed 2,800 postmenopausal women who developed breast cancer beginning in 1995 until their deaths or through the end of 2005.
It found that women who took HRT before they were diagnosed with cancer were more likely to be diagnosed with estrogen receptor-positive cancer, and that the cancer was smaller and detected at an earlier stage. Marshall says that this type of cancer – estrogen receptor-positive cancer – is easier to treat and as a result, women have a lower risk of dying.