Designer Estrogen Question..

I will be having a TAH with BSO on November 11th so know I will be entering sudden menopause on that date.

I do not wish to go on HRT but also know the benefits of taking estrogen concerning osteoperosis(?) and heart disease. I was reading a book I have on sudden menopause and they were talking about a designer estrogen that gave you the benefits of estrogen (for bones and heart) without the overstimulation the normal HRT estrogen could do to your breasts, etc.

Has anyone used this or talked to your doctor about this?

Thanks!

L

(((Pangur62))) did the book say what this 'designer estrogen' was called? Might they have been referring to Tibolone, aka Livial? It's a STEAR (selective tissue estrogenic activity regulator) which has been popular for a while in Europe. There are threads here about it -- you can do a search to find them -- as well as some links about it in our Resources directory.

We've had a few members who have used Livial, but most have been in the UK. Here is a link with some information about it:

http://www.organon.com/products/Gyne...hrt/Livial.asp

I hope this helps. Good luck with your surgery!
s,
-Linda

Hi,
I have talked with my doctor about this, and also have studied it in school (not a nurse yet!). I think it's great you're researching this on your own!
Please do not hesitate to leave a message with your doctor's office saying you really want to ask about this. Doctors and nurses go into their field knowing that a big part of their job is to educate and discuss with patients. This is such an important issue that I'd hate for you to feel hesitant to talk with your doc about this.
Again - way to go on researching this kind of thing! Your health will be the better for it. And please remember that your doctor is an important part of your healthcare TEAM (team - meaning he/she knows it's important to work with you on this).

The drug I read about is called Evista (raloxifene) which is referred to as a "selective estrogen receptor modulator". It is said that these drugs mimic the effects of estrogen on the bones and on the heart without stimulating breast or uterine tissue. However, they do NOT halt hot flashes.

I am definitely going to talk to my doctor about this drug since my concern is not getting over hot flashes but how to best protect my bone mass and keep my heart healthy after going into sudden menopause.

Also, researching this type of information gets my head wrapped around something that I do have some bit of "control" over.

l