Hormonal therapy is a method of treating various pathologies, since hormones are protein compounds that can affect various pathogenetic mechanisms that develop in the human body.
Hormone therapy is often used in the treatment of hormone-positive breast tumors. This therapy is also called antiestrogen, since it is aimed at preventing the negative effects of estrogen on tumor cells.
Tamoxifen and aromatase inhibitors are among the most commonly prescribed drugs for breast cancer.
It is worth noting that hormone therapy is characterized by a systemic effect on the body, therefore it can be used to destroy cancer cells after radiation therapy or surgery, as well as after taking chemotherapy drugs to reduce the risk of recurrence of the disease.
Indications for hormone treatment are:
- high risk of breast cancer;
- recurrence in non-invasive breast cancer;
- invasive cancer when neededreduce tumor size for other treatments;
- metastatic tumor.
Hormone therapy for these pathologies is aimed at blocking or destroying estrogen-sensitive receptors, as well as at reducing the concentration of this hormone in the blood.
Hormone replacement therapy for women is also quite common, which is carried out to eliminate menopausal disorders. This therapy is fundamentally different from the standard treatment with hormones, since it is aimed at replenishing their deficiency in the body, and not at inhibiting them.
Replacement therapy is based on the use of various sex hormone analogues, which effectively eliminate symptoms of ovarian failure, such as hot flashes and excessive sweating, headaches, irritability and memory impairment due to insufficient concentration of estrogen.
What to drink with menopause, the doctor should determine. In most cases, low doses of estrogens are prescribed in combination with progestogens, which prevents the development of a hyperplastic process in the endometrium. At the same time, such hormonal therapy should be carried out for at least 5-7 years, which helps prevent the development of osteoporosis and myocardial infarction among postmenopausal women.
I must say that hormone treatment is carried out not only among women, but also among men who havedetect prostate cancer. In this case, antiandrogen therapy is performed, which helps to block the growth, proliferation, and development of cancer cells.
In the treatment, androgen blockades are used, which are carried out by medical castration or by prescribing antiandrogens. Estrogens are often used, which inhibit the secretion of LHRH, suppress the functioning of Leydig cells, and also act cytotoxically on prostate adenocarcinoma cells.
