Rise in Breast Cancers Halt Swedish HRT Study

February 5, 2004

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Misty L. Trepke

Rise in Breast Cancers Halts Swedish HRT Study

type=healthNews & storyID=4266999

Mon February 2, 2004 08:18 PM ET

By Patricia Reaney

LONDON (Reuters) - Swedish researchers stopped a study examining the

impact of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) in women with a history

of breast cancer because of an unacceptably high risk of recurrence

of the disease. The study, originally planned for five years, was

halted after only two because more than three times as many women

taking HRT had a recurrence or new breast tumor compared to women

who received other treatments to relieve symptoms of the menopause.

" We thought we found an unacceptably high risk for a new breast

cancer event in women taking HRT, " said lead investigator Lars

Holmberg, of the University of Uppsala in Sweden.

" Patient safety must be first. We felt the risk was too high, " he

added. After two years of follow-up, 26 women in the group allocated

to receive HRT had a recurrence or new cancer, compared to seven in

the other group not on hormone treatment.

More than 345 women who had had breast cancer took part in the

study. They were randomized to receive either HRT or a non- hormonal

treatments. " Women on active treatment have been advised to

discontinue, " said Holmberg, whose findings were published online by

The Lancet. Millions of women have used HRT to relieve hot flushes,

mood swings and sexual problems linked to the menopause and to stave

off osteoporosis, or brittle bone disease.

The Swedish decision followed moves by American and British

scientists who also stopped HRT trials after learning HRT may

increase the risk of breast cancer, stroke and blood clots.

An analysis of four major studies into the effects of HRT by

scientists at the British charity Cancer Research UK supported the

U.S. findings. The review showed that women who took the treatment

for five years had a higher risk of breast cancer, stroke and blood

clots in the lung but were less likely to suffer from bowel cancer

or hip fractures.

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