The first episode of the HRT after breast cancer series features oncologist Dr. Leila Agrawal, who discusses the evidence, studies, and trials regarding HRT for breast cancer patients.

Dr. Laila Agrawal is a medical oncologist and haematologist specialising in treating breast cancer patients. She is involved in research and clinical trials and she strives to get to know every patient and learn what is important in their lives, from their families to their goals, and how that plays into important decisions about their health.

This mini-series explores hormone replacement therapy (HRT) after breast cancer, a controversial and emotive subject. The conversation focuses on the further understanding of risks and benefits of HRT (hormone replacement therapy) or also MHT (menopause hormone therapy), the emotional impact on patients, and the different views among medical professionals. 

The goal is to provide understanding for patients seeking HRT after breast cancer and insight for doctors on how to move forward without robust evidence. Dani Binnington, host of the Menopause And Cancer podcast, and founder of the not-for-profit organisation Menopause And Cancer has spoken to hundreds of women who feel like they are in a void and have nowhere to turn to in discussing this difficult topic. Welcome to our HRT after breast cancer series.

In this episode we discuss:

• The role of hormone-blocking medications such as tamoxifen and aromatase inhibitors for breast cancer survivors.
• Dr. Agrawal discusses many studies on HRT after breast cancer, including the The Habits study which showed an increased risk of recurrence in the HRT group, leading to the trial being stopped early.
• She goes on to explain The Stockholm study which did not show an increased risk of recurrence.
• Dr. Agrawal explains other studies, including observational studies that looked at the use of hormone replacement therapy after breast cancer and explains the outcome of meta-analysis for different types of breast cancers. 
• We discuss what these study results mean for different types of cancers, such as triple-negative breast cancer. 
• Dr. Agrawal discusses the difference between absolute risk and relative risk is and why this is important when interpreting data.
• Additional research is needed to determine the safety and efficacy of HRT in breast cancer survivors.

Episode Highlights: 

00:00 Intro.

04:19 Understanding patient perspectives and ethical medical decisions.

08:10 Different types of breast cancer treatment options.

09:52 Aromatase inhibitors used to treat breast cancer.

17:01 Breast cancer trial halted due to risk.

25:05 Stockholm Study.

37:14 Interpreting risk reduction impact of treatments accurately.

48:04 Data on tamoxifen and HRT remains inconclusive.

53:25 Understanding and quantifying medical risks for patients.

Connect with us:

For more information and resources visit our website: www.menopauseandcancer.org

Or follow us on Instagram @menopause_and_cancer

Join our Facebook group: www.facebook.com/groups/menopauseandcancerchathub