Can a woman with breast cancer use bio-identical estrogen hormones?
Bio-identical estrogens are real hormones and so the benefits and risks must still be weighed in your decision-making. In the past, most doctors have strongly discouraged women with a history of breast cancer from using any kind of preparations containing estrogen. As we learn more about how breast cancer behaves, hormone treatment options for many of these women are now changing. Many oncologists now feel comfortable in allowing women with who are five years out from their diagnosis and treatment to take low doses of estrogen for their menopausal symptoms. Every woman’s case is individual. It is best to get several medical opinions about whether you should or should not take hormones if you have had treated breast cancer.