As bioidentical hormone replacements are becoming more and more popular, women are becoming more concerned about the safety of this medication. Due to negative effects brought about by conventional hormone replacements, many women are now questioning whether bioidenticals are safer than synthetic hormones. One particular concern that seems to be of an endless debate is whether or not bioidentical hormone replacements can cause breast cancer.
It so happens that prior to the breakthrough of bioidenticals, synthetic hormones where widely prescribed for the hormonal treatment of perimenopausal and menopausal women. Many physicians would rave about the effectiveness of these synthetic hormones in defeating the symptoms of hormone deficiency. As a matter of fact, hormone replacement therapy was touted as the “best thing for liberating women since the discovery of oral contraceptives.”
In the 2002, the Women's Health Initiative published a study revealing that hormone replacements or synthetic hormones are dangerous as they increased the risk of breast cancer as well as heart disease, blood clots and stroke in women.
In the 2002, however, the Women’s Health Initiative published a study revealing that hormone replacements or synthetic hormones are dangerous as they increased the risk of breast cancer as well as heart disease, blood clots and stroke in women. This study shook the entire market and many women discontinued their use of this treatment fearing the dangers it could cause to their health.
According to Dr. Jacques Rossouw, director of the NIH, the risk of breast cancer was actually small at first but grew considerably over years of use which made it a public health concern. Those risks actually outweighed the drugs’ actual benefits and made it necessary to recommend the discontinuance of its use.
Today, bioidentical hormone replacements are being sold in the market for the treatment of the same medical concerns that synthetic hormone replacements were used for. Women, however, are now more skeptic about the safety of this medication. Like synthetic hormone replacements, bioidentical hormone treatments are composed of estrogen, progesterone and sometimes, testosterone. Estrogen is believed to be the hormone that triggered breast cancer among synthetic hormone users. Women are now concerned if whether or not, like synthetic hormones, bioidentical hormone treatments can also cause breast cancer.
To fully comprehend the matter, it is best that the functions of estrogen hormones be first discussed. The body produces three kinds of estrogen: estriol, estrone, and estradiol. These 3 classifications of estrogens have different physiological effects to the body. Estriol is basically the hormone used in bioidentical hormone treatments.
Long before, it was believed that estriol played the smallest role among the three hormones. Later on, however, many more studies were conducted suggesting that the weakness of this hormone conferred certain beneficial effects in contrast with the other two more potent estrogens. The non-stimulating effects of estriol on estrogen receptors allows it to decrease the stimulating effects and pro-carcinogenic effects of the more powerful estrogens, particularly estadiol, which, by the way, is the estrogen hormone provided by synthetic hormone replacements. This suggests that the estrogen hormone estriol cannot cause breast cancer but on the contrary has a protective effect against radiation-induced cancer of the breast.
Estrone and estradiol, on the other hand, bind to and activate the estrogen receptor alpha. This explains why, on their own, they promote breast cancer. Since estradiol has been widely used in hormone replacement treatments, it has become a given fact that this form of treatment can absolutely cause breast cancer. On the contrary, bioidentical hormone replacements are composed of estriol estrogens, which is pivotal in the prevention of breast cancer.
