| "It was once described as the last frontier in the emancipation of women, a pill that would ease the transition through the menopause and allow those who took it to slip into a contented middle age. Now the world's largest study of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) has shown that it may have caused 1,000 deaths from ovarian cancer between 1991 and 2005." "The new finding strengthens the evidence that HRT poses a serious danger to women. Previous results from the same study have shown that the risk of breast cancer and endometrial cancer (of the lining of the womb) is also increased by the treatment." "Overall, the incidence of these three common cancers are increased by 63 per cent among women currently taking HRT compared with those who have never taken it. That means 12 extra cases of cancer for every 1,000 women taking HRT over five years. The risk increases from 19 expected cases among women who had never taken the treatment to 31 among HRT users." "An estimated two million women were taking HRT at the height of its popularity in 2002 in the UK and millions more worldwide. The huge numbers exposed to the drug mean that tens of thousands will have developed cancer as a result." "On top of the cancer risk, HRT also increases the risk of stroke and thrombosis (blood clots). Earlier evidence suggesting it cut the risk of heart disease has not been borne out by later studies. Professor Valerie Beral, chief author of the ovarian cancer study, published in The Lancet, said the argument about HRT was now settled. "In terms of the major health impact of HRT, the adverse effects outweigh the benefits. I don't think in the serious scientific literature there is any longer a debate about this."" "Referring to a recent study published earlier this month in the Journal of the American Medical Association (Jama), which was claimed to show that HRT may protect some women against heart problems, Professor Beral said it had been misinterpreted." "The study focused on the link between HRT and age and showed that the risks are lower for women who start HRT while still relatively young than for those who take it 20 or more years past the menopause." "But Professor Beral, of the Cancer Research UK Epidemiology Unit in Oxford, said it was wrong to suggest that this showed HRT was safe for younger women. "There is a possible trend of increasing risk with age - though it is opposite for stroke where the risk is higher in younger women. But there is not a significant benefit for younger women. The Jama study concluded
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