Tag Archives: breast cancer

How to reduce your risk of breast cancer

| March 15, 2023

One third of breast cancers could be prevented through changes in lifestyle. So, what do you need to do to reduce your risk?   Around 55,000 women and 370 men are diagnosed with breast cancer every year in the UK according to Breast Cancer Now.  The greatest risk factors are being a woman and aging – and there’s not much you can do about those, but there are a number of things you do have control over that could significantly reduce your risk. In fact, according to Dawn Mussallem, a lifestyle medicine specialist, breast specialist and  Mayo Clinic consultant in…

Menopause, HRT and Breast Cancer

| May 27, 2021

Consultant Gynaecologist Professor Isaac Manyonda answers some frequently asked questions on menopause, HRT and breast cancer. Q: Is HRT safe? A: “There’s no doubt that the one thing what worries women when it comes to HRT is the Big C, breast cancer. When it comes to the WHI studies which were published in 2002-3, the main focus was on breast cancer and sadly there was a lot of confusion about it. “If you take 1000 women and follow them up for 5 years, 23 who are not taking HRT will get breast cancer, so it’s quite common. But if you…

HRT and Breast Cancer: what you need to know

| May 13, 2021

The mere mention of HRT can spark fears of breast cancer, but should it? Breast surgeon Professor Zoe Winters and Consultant Gynacologist Jeannie Yoon set the record straight.   Navigating the Menopause can be a huge challenge for many women. It can be a strange and isolating time for some as despite being well informed, there remains a taboo about acknowledging it and discussing it openly.  Approximately 95% of women will go through the Menopause between the ages of 45 and 55 years with an average age of 51 years. The symptoms can range from minor to debilitating and include…

18 years after the WHI study whats to celebrate

| July 9, 2020

Happy 18th! The WHI study on HRT has come of age. But should we be celebrating? Some doctors argue the effects of this study have cost a generation of women their long term health.   You may remember waking up 18 years ago to headlines emblazoned across newspapers proclaiming hormone replacement therapy (HRT) increased the risk of developing breast cancer. If you were about to take your morning dose, you could easily be forgiven for spitting it out and then flushing it and the rest of the packet down the loo. And you wouldn’t have been alone. The story was…

HRT – it’s your choice

| June 23, 2020

Often women are told they can’t have HRT. Dr Sarah Ball, a GP with a special interest in menopause, explains why it should ultimately be a woman’s choice. Woman are often told by their doctor that when they reached 60 they can no longer have HRT, or that they’re too young to start taking it in their 40’s. Women who’ve had breast cancer are told they can’t ever have it – but is this always the best information? Dr Sarah Ball argues that women should be given all the facts so they can make their own decisions about whether they…

HRT Studies and Safety Issues Explained

| September 9, 2019

 Health experts label HRT risk study reporting ‘Irresponsible’. But, should we still be worried?   It seems that every month or so a new study emerges that looks at the risks posed by HRT. It gets reported in the media and women are once again plunged into confusion about whether they should start or continue taking HRT. But many doctors are not impressed claiming the way these studies are reported in the press is ‘irresponsible’ and ‘scaremongering’ with headlines such as ‘Breast cancer risk from using HRT is ‘twice what was thought’ appearing in national newspapers. The study that prompted…

HRT: The Risks Explained

| March 25, 2019

Confused about HRT? Professor Isaac Manyonda talks you through the risks and benefits.   What do you think the biggest killer of women in England is today? You might think it’s heart disease or cancer but it is, in fact, dementia. It’s not surprising since we’re living longer, but does that mean we need to think about our long-term health, and the risks to it, in a different way? At the moment many women are afraid of taking HRT because they’re worried about the risk of developing breast cancer. Unfortunately, neither the magnitude of the risks nor the benefits of…

Breast cancer and menopause: how can you manage the symptoms

| February 19, 2019

How do you relieve menopause symptoms if you’ve had breast cancer & can’t take HRT? One in eight women in the UK develop breast cancer at some stage in their adult life. The diagnosis can be devastating, but just to add insult to injury it can also mean many women are either plunged into an early menopause because of the treatments or encouraged to go off their HRT because of the risk of a recurrence or new breast cancer. So, on top of having to deal with the cancer itself, there is a host of unwanted and unwelcome symptoms that they…