The most common treatment for menopausal syndrome is menopausal
hormone therapy (
MHT), however, the safety of
MHT, due to the risk of developing and recurrent
breast cancer (BC), is still a matter of debate. The review presents the results of randomized cohort studies of this issue. It has been shown that
MHT increases the risk of developing of
breast cancer and disease recurrence
after treatment. Risk of
breast cancer developing in women getting
MHT, depends on body mass index (BMI), duration of
hormone use and dose of drugs, and is greater in thin women comparing with women with increased BMI, and also greater in
estrogen-
progestin combined
MHT users comparing with
estrogen-only users. It was found that in women using
MHT hormone-dependent forms of
cancer developed more often, but by the time of diagnosis, disease was found in more advanced stage and
metastases in lymph nodes were found more often comparing with patients who did not use
MHT. Risk of
breast cancer recurrence is less with the use of low doses of vaginal
estrogen. An alternative option for the relief of menopausal disorders in
breast cancer patients during and
after treatment is using of pineal gland
hormone melatonin, since, along with its anti-aging properties, it is able to suppress
cancer at the stages of initiation, progression and
metastasis and has the ability to reduce the toxic effects of anticancer drugs while increasing their effectiveness.