7 Healthcast: HRT Conference

A study halted this summer on hormone replacement therapy has left many women confused. Today a two-day conference began in Washington, so the nation's top docs can discuss better ways to help patients sort out this issue.

The goal of the conference is to give doctors and patients a better understanding of the research and help them weigh the risks and benefits of hormone therapy. Along with alleviating hot flashes and other menopausal symptoms, HRT was prescribed to help prevent heart disease.

But in July an NIH study found the combination of the hormones estrogen and progestin, most commonly sold as Prempro, slightly increased the risk of breast cancer and heart disease.

Dr. Marian Limacher, University of Florida
"So we now need to re-address why women are taking their hormone preparations. If it was to prevent cardiac disease and stroke, we now need to remove that from the equation and look at why else they may still be on it."

The consensus among experts right now is the hormone combo is safe if only used for a few years to treat hot flashes. The effects of estrogen alone have yet to be determined.