Before July 2002, six million American women were taking a combination hormone pill containing estrogen and progestin. For years, doctors across the nation had prescribed hormone replacement therapy (HRT) not only to relieve the hot flashes, night sweats, and depression that often accompany menopause, but also as a form of protection against heart disease. But then federal researchers discovered that the opposite was true: for some women, HRT actually increased the risk of heart disease, stroke, and blood clots, as well as breast cancer. Because of these risks, the National Institutes of Health abruptly halted a huge study of HRT, leaving millions of women in the lurch.

Should you continue to take HRT, and if you have to stop, what are your alternatives? The lead investigator on the federal study, Dr. Marcia Stefanick, has some answers. So do doctors, researchers, and alternative practitioners who are closely following the HRT controversy.

Click to listen to Consumer Health Interactive's in-depth audio report (6:54 min). If you'd like to read the audio script, click here.

Digital Audio Team

Reporter, Writer, and Digital Audio Editor: Laurie Udesky
Producer: Laurie Udesky
Script Editors: Diana Hembree and Elaine Herscher
Script Graphics: Psyche Pascual
Introductory Narration: Michael Johnson
Multimedia Editor: Deepi Brar
Web Engineering: Rusty Hodge
Scheduling: Sahana Behera

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First published January 16, 2003
Last updated May 6, 2008
Copyright © 2003 Consumer Health Interactive