Women taking HT had a significantly decreased incidence of fracture with long-term use .
Research ers found no strong evidence that HT has a clinical ly meaningful impact on the incidence of colorectal cancer .
AUTHORS ' CONCLUSIONS : Women with intolerable menopausal symptoms may wish to weigh the benefits of symptom relief against the small absolute risk of harm arising from short-term use of low-dose HT , provided they do not have specific contraindications .
HT may be unsuitable for some women , including those at increased risk of cardiovascular disease , increased risk of thromboembolic disease ( such as those with obesity or a history of venous thrombosis ) or increased risk of some types of cancer ( such as breast cancer , in women with a uterus ) .
The risk of endometrial cancer among women with a uterus taking oestrogen-only HT is well documented .
HT is not indicated for primary or secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease or dementia , nor for prevention of deterioration of cognitive function in postmenopausal women .
Although HT is considered effective for the prevention of postmenopausal osteoporosis , it is generally recommended as an option only for women at significant risk for whom non-oestrogen therapies are unsuitable .
BACKGROUND : Hormone therapy ( HT ) is widely provided for control of menopausal symptoms and has been used for the management and prevention of cardiovascular disease , osteoporosis and  dementia in older women .
This is an up date d version of a Cochrane review first published in 2005 .
OBJECTIVES : To assess effects of long-term HT ( at least 1 year 's duration ) on mortality , cardiovascular outcomes , cancer , gallbladder disease , fracture and cognition in perimenopausal and postmenopausal women during and after cessation of treatment .
Continuous Combined Estrogen Plus Progestin and Endometrial Cancer: The Women's Health Initiative Randomized Trial.
BACKGROUND While progestin addition to estrogen mitigates endometrial cancer risk , the magnitude of the effect on incidence , specific endometrial cancer histologies , and endometrial cancer mortality remains unsettled . These issues were assessed by analyses after extended follow-up of the Women 's Health Initiative ( WHI ) r and omized clinical trial evaluating continuous combined estrogen plus progestin use . METHODS The WHI enrolled 16 608 postmenopausal women into a r and omly assigned , double-blind , placebo-controlled trial . Women age 50 to 79 years with intact uteri with normal endometrial biopsy at entry were r and omly assigned to once-daily 0.625 mg conjugated equine estrogen plus 2.5 mg medroxyprogesterone acetate ( n = 8506 ) as a single pill or matching placebo ( n = 8102 ) . Follow-up beyond the original trial completion date required reconsent , obtained from 12 788 ( 83 % ) of surviving participants . Analyses were by intent-to-treat . All statistical tests were two-sided . RESULTS After 5.6 years ' median intervention and 13 years ' median cumulative follow-up , there were fewer endometrial cancers in the combined hormone therapy compared with the placebo group ( 66 vs 95 case patients , yearly incidence , 0.06 % vs 0.10 % ; hazard ratio [ HR ] = 0.65 , 95 % confidence interval [ CI ] = 0.48 to 0.89 , P = .007 ) . While there were somewhat fewer endometrial cancers during intervention ( 25 vs 30 , respectively ; HR = 0.77 , 95 % CI = 0.45 to 1.31 ) , the difference became statistically significant postintervention ( 41 vs 65 , respectively ; HR = 0.59 , 95 % CI = 0.40 to 0.88 , P = .008 ) , but hazard ratios did not differ between phases ( P difference = .46 ) . There was a statistically nonsignificant reduction in deaths from endometrial cancer in the estrogen plus progestin group ( 5 vs 11 deaths , HR = 0.42 , 95 % CI = 0.15 to 1.22 ) . CONCLUSION In postmenopausal women , continuous combined estrogen plus progestin decreases endometrial cancer incidence
Women taking HT had a significantly decreased incidence of fracture with long-term use .
Research ers found no strong evidence that HT has a clinical ly meaningful impact on the incidence of colorectal cancer .
AUTHORS ' CONCLUSIONS : Women with intolerable menopausal symptoms may wish to weigh the benefits of symptom relief against the small absolute risk of harm arising from short-term use of low-dose HT , provided they do not have specific contraindications .
HT may be unsuitable for some women , including those at increased risk of cardiovascular disease , increased risk of thromboembolic disease ( such as those with obesity or a history of venous thrombosis ) or increased risk of some types of cancer ( such as breast cancer , in women with a uterus ) .
The risk of endometrial cancer among women with a uterus taking oestrogen-only HT is well documented .
HT is not indicated for primary or secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease or dementia , nor for prevention of deterioration of cognitive function in postmenopausal women .
Although HT is considered effective for the prevention of postmenopausal osteoporosis , it is generally recommended as an option only for women at significant risk for whom non-oestrogen therapies are unsuitable .
BACKGROUND : Hormone therapy ( HT ) is widely provided for control of menopausal symptoms and has been used for the management and prevention of cardiovascular disease , osteoporosis and  dementia in older women .
This is an up date d version of a Cochrane review first published in 2005 .
OBJECTIVES : To assess effects of long-term HT ( at least 1 year 's duration ) on mortality , cardiovascular outcomes , cancer , gallbladder disease , fracture and cognition in perimenopausal and postmenopausal women during and after cessation of treatment .