Quote from: deeiche on March 21, 2016, 06:12:50 PM
I have never seen any reports studying long term treatment of transwomen with HRT.
We have plenty of studies dating back to the 1960's. It's a matter of taking the time to dig them up, read them in their entirety and draw some conclusions as some recent researchers have, regarding the different health risks associated with HRT. Take Gooren's* or Asscheman's studies, for instance or this study (
Journal of Clinical & Translational Endocrinology 2 (2015) 55-60,
Hormone therapy in transgender adults is safe with provider supervision; A review of hormone therapy sequelae for transgender individuals) Add to that the studies on ciswomen, on men and observations in pregnant women and you begin to see a pattern unfold. Soon enough, you realize that if bio-identical hormones are taken for a lifetime, they are quite safe and beneficial, to ageing, bones, perhaps breast cancer (as studies are more indicative of a protective than harmful effect, if you take the time to read several different types of studies and understand what they mean and their strengths/weaknesses), perhaps colon cancer, memory (it can slow down the onset or prevent Alzheimer's), mood, energy, libido, feminine appearance, skin/hair, cardiovascular health (as opposed to some progestogens and non bio-identical forms of estrogen; accounts for why women before menopause suffer less from this than men).
QuoteI stopped HRT post SRS because I didn't believe any getting injections the rest of my life. I have taken calcium supplements the last 15 years or so.
Estrogen is not only necessary for bones but for so many other things, as mentioned above. I see no reason, if one relies on studies so far, to not take HRT if the right hormones are taken, especially non-orally in the case of estradiol as it negligibly affect the risk of clots (supported by my own experience, pregnancy in women and studies in men and transsexual women).
Sadly, just because of the bad rap non-bio-identical estrogens have gotten and the famous WHI study of 2003 (which interestingly, was replicated years before with opposite results but on a smaller population), women and many doctors have come to view HRT in a negative fashion. The victims are the women who believe that all HRT is bad and who miss getting the many benefits from them when the right hormones are taken.
QuoteJust to let you know there is another perspective related to HRT.
It's your life, I respect your decision. But, I hope you took that decision knowing full well the potential consequences of not taking any hormones and having a clear understanding of the benefits/risks after having fully read through the literature. It would be unfortunate if that decision was based on incomplete or not fully understood data. I tend to blame more the doctors than the patients as the latter should (perhaps in an ideal world) rely on them to make sound decisions and be well-informed but in the world of HRT as it relates to transgendered women especially, few doctors are really well-versed and there is no official training at medical school for this. Biases also exist not only toward transgendered people but towards women, especially when doctors are male.
*
Journal of Clinical & Translational Endocrinology 2 (2015) 55-60"Gooren et al. (2008), reported no increase in VTE among 2236 male-to-female (MTF) transgender individuals on HT
from 1975 to 2006 compared with controls, with the exception of those who used ethinyl estradiol, for which there was a 6-8% incidence [4]."
J Sex Med 2013;10:3129–3134"We researched the occurrence of breast cancer among transsexual persons 18–80 years with an exposure
to cross-sex hormones between 5 to >30 years. Our study included 2,307 male-to-female (MtF) transsexual persons
undergoing androgen deprivation and estrogen administration (52,370 person-years of exposure)"
"The mean follow-up period of subjects receiving anti-androgens and estrogens or only estrogens was 21.4 ± 8.7 years
(median 17.6, range 6.0–43.5 years)."
Another mention of long-term reports (follow-ups)
Andrologia. 2015 Aug;47(6):680-4."In the Amsterdam Gender Clinic between 1975 and
2006, 2306 MtoF transsexual subjects were treated. The
mean age at initiation of treatment was 29.3 12.7 years,
with a range of 16–83 years. Mean follow-up in these
subjects was 21.4 years, providing a total of 51 173
person-years of exposure and follow-up. Follow-up of
20 years or more was available of 303 individuals,
including follow-up of 30 years or greater in 151."
"In Trangender Clinic of Hospital das Clınicas, at the
Medical School of University of Sao Paulo, 166 MtoF
transsexuals have been followed since 1996."
