Hormone replacement therapy, or HRT, is a common treatment for menopausal women, as it is long believed that the decrease in hormone levels after menopause was overwhelmingly detrimental to a woman's health.
While certain effects of menopause can be serious health problems, many physicians prescribe HRT for all menopausal women, with little regard to the severity of the woman's individual issues, and little thought to the potential long term consequences of prolonged hormone replacement therapy.
Dangers of hormone replacement therapy
However, many studies have indicated serious problems with many hormone replacement medications , involving a wide range of problems, including increased risks of:
· Strokes and other cerebral events
· Heart attacks
· Pulmonary embolism
· Deep vein thrombosis (DVT)
· Breast cancer
· Death
Types of HRT
There are three major types of hormone replacement therapy, each with its own issues:
· Estrogen only therapy—Estrogen only therapy has been shown to increase the risk of uterine cancer by 600 to 800 percent. As such, this type of HRT is only recommended for women who do not have a uterus.
· Estrogen-progestin therapy—Combination estrogen and progestin therapy is the most common type of HRT in use today. However, this type has been shown to significantly increase women's chances for breast cancer, heart attacks, strokes, and blood clots.
· Progestin only therapy—Progestin only hormone replacement therapy is the least common type of HRT in use today, and has been linked to a 300% increase in rates of breast cancer.
HRT litigation
Many women who were prescribed HRT have received compensatory and punitive damages from manufacturers of hormone replacement therapy medications. These lawsuits are generally based on the fact that drug manufacturers intentionally played down and ignored the risks inherent to hormone replacement.
Injured parties suffered from illnesses and fatalities as a result of health problems including:
· Breast cancer
· Ovarian cancer
· Gall bladder cancer
· Non-Hodgkins lymphoma
· Strokes
· Blood clots
If you or a family member was injured, and you believe that HRT treatment may be responsible, it is important that you consult with an experienced pharmaceutical liability attorney as soon as possible, in order to preserve your case and your rights.