Breast Cancer, Hormone Therapy & Lifestyle - #38

The aftermath of the Women's Health Initiative (1990s), left millions of women confused and scared about their risk of developing breast cancer if they used hormone therapy. The science was later debunked due to the study's flaws, but the dark cloud of fear still reigns. Can we undo the damage?

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month and I am celebrating my mother, a breast cancer survivor, and all the women (and men) who’ve battled this terrible disease.

In 1991, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute began the largest clinical trial in the US to better understand how these diseases (breast cancer, heart disease, stroke, blood clots), affected post-menopausal women. More than 160,000 women, ages 50-79 participated in this 15-year-long study. In 2002, results found that post-menopausal women taking estrogen and progestin HRT had an increased risk for all of the diseases I listed before. As a result of these findings, millions of women stopped taking hormones, many doctors stopped prescribing these hormones, and the study was halted prematurely. Years later, it was discovered that the study wasn’t all that kosher. There were flaws.

By the time the flaws were discovered, the damage had already been done. Women, who would have been protected against these diseases, were now suffering from menopausal symptoms, a staggering increase in heart disease (the #1 killer for women post-menopause), hip fractures (in one study I read, there were an estimated 43,000 hip fractures reported each year after the study stopped), and those women are now much too old to begin thinking about HRT, like my mother.

Millions of women do not take hormones for fear of developing breast cancer. Their fear stems from either being misinformed or misguided by their doctor or they haven’t had the opportunity to talk to their doctor about their options. Meanwhile, they experience night sweats, brain fog, loss of lean muscle mass, increased body fat, low to no libido, hair loss, and don’t sleep. At the end of the day, we all get to make our own choices, but let’s just make that choice based on education, knowledge, and the current medical science.

To help break this all down for us, I have invited an exceptional guest to today’s episode.

Dr. Jenn Simmons was a breast cancer surgeon and a leader in cancer care in Philadelphia. After spending 17 years as Philly’s top breast surgeon, her own illness led her to discover functional medicine. In 2019, she left her esteemed surgical position for a new life as a functional medicine doctor and founded Real Health MD with the mission to help women with breast cancer truly heal. Dr. Jenn believes that we all have the ability to live healthy and productive lives. Her integrative approach takes into account your physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and social well-being.

Medical Disclaimer:

By listening to this podcast, you agree not to use this podcast as medical advice or for making any lifestyle changes to treat any medical condition in either yourself or others. Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having. This entire disclaimer also applies to any of my guests on my podcast.

Find Dr. Jenn here:

website: www.realhealthmd.com

FB: RealHealth MD

IG: drjennsimmons

twitter: Dr. Jenn Simmons

Register now for Beyond The Cancer Summit:

https://bit.ly/3HnYp1f