Hormonal replacement therapy in women with a history of internal genital organ malignancy

Sudden cessation of ovary activity as a result of bilateral oophorectomy or chemo- or radiotherapy in premenopausal women is linked with more serious consequences that bear no comparison to natural menopause – to name just a few: higher rate of mortality, higher rate of colorectal and lung cancer, circulatory system diseases, cognitive disorders, Parkinson’s disease, psychological disorders, osteoporosis, and sexual disorders. The prolonged period of estrogens deficit in premenopausal age is connected with worsened quality of life.

The progress in oncological care means that in many malignant diseases, also in the case of gynaecological malignancies, the percentage of survivors increases. This makes improving the quality of life more and more important.

The purpose of this review is to establish, based on EBM data, the answer to whether replacement hormonal therapy, being the most effective treatment of menopause symptoms, can be recommended for women who have undergone bilateral oophorectomy because of gynaecological cancer.

On the basis of collected data, derived from meta-analysis, and studies which have been published within the last 20 years, it seems that the use of the appropriate type of hormonal replacement therapy (HRT) in properly selected gynaecological cancer survivors (epithelial ovarian cancer – EOC, endometrial cancer, squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix) is safe and effective.

It seems that benefits connected with better quality of life that stem from the use of appropriate HRT in gynaecological cancer survivors predominate the unfounded fear of disease recurrence in selected patients’ groups.