Hormone therapy

As part of a Hormone therapy or Hormone treatment the body's own hormones can be supplemented or replaced. Hormone therapy is used in various areas of medicine. Depending on various factors, hormone therapy carries risks that can be controlled.

What is hormone therapy?

The Hormone therapy is a medical treatment process in which various hormones are used as drugs. Depending on the clinical picture, hormone therapy also uses anti-hormonal substances.

In this way, the production of certain endogenous hormones can be blocked or delayed if this is of medical benefit. Depending on the form of hormone therapy, the nature of hormonal medicines can be different:

For example, natural hormones or synthetic (artificially produced) hormones can be administered in hormone therapy. In addition to natural hormones as medicinal products, there are also so-called nature-identical hormones that are administered by various representatives of hormone therapy.

Function, effect & goals

The areas of application of a Hormone therapy are diverse. Hormone therapy is used, for example, in the medical field of gynecology: for example, female sex hormones are used to treat symptoms associated with menopause (also known as climacteric). During the menopause, among other things, the estrogen level in the female body drops, which is why the sex hormone estrogen can be administered as part of hormone therapy if a woman has severe symptoms.

Such hormone therapy aims to combat symptoms such as brittle nails on hands and feet or severe dryness of skin and hair. In addition to the sex hormone estrogen, hormones such as progesterone or progesterone can also be used as part of a corresponding hormone therapy.

Another form of hormone therapy in gynecology is contraception using the so-called birth control pill. Depending on the product, this medicinal product contains the hormones progestin and estrogen in different compositions. The contained estrogen suppresses ovulation and the gestagen fulfills the task of preventing an egg from being fertilized as part of hormone therapy with the help of the birth control pill.

Another area of ​​application of hormone therapy is in the treatment of malfunctioning thyroid glands: If an affected person has an underactive thyroid, this often leads to limited or even absent production of thyroid hormones. Since these hormones play an important role in the body's metabolic processes, among other things, they are supplied to the body as part of hormone therapy.

This form of hormone therapy is also known as substitution therapy. If the thyroid gland is enlarged, the aim of hormone therapy can be to reduce the thyroid activity. This form of hormone therapy is then called suppression therapy.

And hormone therapy also plays a role in the treatment of various cancers. In this context, a form of hormone therapy is also known as anti-hormone therapy: Here, the body's own hormones are inhibited that would otherwise promote the growth of certain cancer cells. Targeted hormone therapy complements chemotherapy or radiation therapy in many cases in the fight against cancer.

Risks & dangers

In addition to its benefits, a Hormone therapy also bring various risks and dangers with them. Studies have shown, for example, that the use of hormone therapy with the female sex hormones estrogen and progestin to combat menopausal symptoms can be associated with an increased risk of breast cancer.

According to experts, further possible risks of hormone therapy are an increased susceptibility to strokes, heart attacks and venous thromboses. The level of risks associated with hormone therapy depends, among other things, on the duration of the treatment, the dose of hormones administered and the type of administration of the hormones:

For example, studies have shown that the risk of thrombosis in connection with hormone therapy in women going through menopause is reduced if the hormones are administered through the skin (e.g. patches or creams) instead of tablets.

The nature of the sex hormones administered can also influence the risks of hormone therapy: it has been shown, for example, that the administration of synthetic progestins is associated with a higher risk of breast cancer than the administration of natural progesterone.