A Guide to Good Health

How Hormone Therapy Helps Women With Recurring Breast Cancer

Breast cancer is a nightmare for many women but advances in therapy make it more treatable now than ever. However, a high rate of recurrence in some cases may put a woman back into dangerous territory but with a weaker body after treatment. As a result, hormone therapy may be the best option for women in this scary and unpredictable situation.

Breast Cancer Recurrence Can Be a Scary Situation

Successful breast cancer treatment is a wonderful thing when it fully handles this disease. However, there are situations in which a breast cancer may recur in a woman and spread throughout her breasts. Some cases of breast cancer a recurrence rate as high as 25 percent, which makes this situation one that many women are going to experience at some point in their lives.

The worst thing about this situation is that a woman may already be in tough physical shape after going through her breast cancer therapy. Chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery are all powerful ways to manage breast cancer but can leave a woman with little physical or emotional energy to fight a recurring tumor. As a result, a less invasive method, such as hormone therapy, may be necessary.

When Hormone Therapy Can Help

Hormone therapy is a unique care option for cancer that may help manage recurring cancer or decrease a woman's risk of it developing. The idea is to block certain types of receptors that allow breast cancer to grow, particularly estrogen receptors. When taking these medications, a woman will have a much lower risk of recurring cancer or may even get small tumors to stop or recede a little.

This option is often used in women who have gone through surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation treatment and who are exhausted as a result. Hormones are not as demanding on the body as hormone therapy, which makes it easier to tolerate. That said, it isn't as powerful as these options, which is why it is often used a preventative care option or one to manage very small recurring breast cancer outbreaks.

Breast cancer treatment services must be started early in the life cycle of breast cancer to make it as effective as possible. However, once it is properly utilized for a woman's therapy, it can be a powerful way to help them recover from recurring cancer without having to go into more intensive treatment options or even get their breasts removed.