Science, Public Health, and Public Awareness: Lessons from the Women's Health Initiative
Authors: Susan Dentzer
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2003)

Editorials18 February 2003Science, Public Health, and Public Awareness: Lessons from the Women's Health InitiativeSusan DentzerSusan DentzerFrom The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer; Arlington, VA 20815Author, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-138-4-200302180-00018 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail In science, as in life generally, no good deed goes unpunished. One very good deed was the decision to conduct the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) study on hormone therapy. Another was ending the combination estrogen and progestin arm of the trial once it became clear that many of the supposed preventive benefits of the hormone drug therapy were illusory and that for many women, the drugs were actually harmful. So it was perhaps inevitable that the July 2002 announcement of the study's end would provoke a punishing backlash.Countless women stopped taking hormones cold turkey and voiced a bitter sense ...References1. Kirschstein R. Menopausal hormone therapy: summary of a scientific workshop. Ann Intern Med. 2003;138:361-4. LinkGoogle Scholar2. Rossouw JE, Anderson GL, Prentice RL, LaCroix AZ, Kooperberg C, Stefanick ML, . Risks and benefits of estrogen plus progestin in healthy postmenopausal women: principal results from the Women's Health initiative randomized, controlled trial. JAMA. 2002;288:321-33. [PMID: 12117397] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. Hulley S, Grady D, Bush T, Furberg C, Herrington D, Riggs B, . Randomized trial of estrogen plus progestin for secondary prevention of coronary heart disease in postmenopausal women. Heart and Estrogen/progestin Replacement Study (HERS) Research Group. JAMA. 1998;280:605-13. [PMID: 9718051] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar4. Partnership for Prevention. Women, Hormone Replacement Therapy and Disease Prevention. Topline data. Accessed at www.prevent.org/surveyresults.htm on 1 January 2003. Google Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAuthors: Susan DentzerAffiliations: From The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer; Arlington, VA 20815Corresponding Author: Susan Dentzer, Health Correspondent, The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, 2700 South Quincy Street, Suite 240, Arlington, VA 20815. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoMenopausal Hormone Therapy: Summary of a Scientific Workshop Ruth Kirschstein Metrics Cited byCambios en la alerta social respecto a los trastornos cognitivos en los últimos 20 años. Influencia de los medios de comunicaciónMedicalization Survived the Women's Health Initiative … But, Has Discourse Opened Up?Changes in Hormone Therapy Prescriptions Among Middle-Aged Women in Taiwan: Implications for Health Needs at MenopauseQuestions and AnswersSelf-reported bladder function five years post-hysterectomySocioeconomic Position and Hormone Replacement Therapy Use: Explaining the Discrepancy in Evidence From Observational and Randomized Controlled TrialsPostmenopausal hormone therapy before and after the women's health initiative study: what consequences? 18 February 2003Volume 138, Issue 4Page: 352-353KeywordsBreast cancerCardiovascular therapyEstrogensHealth information technologyHormonal therapyHormonesObstetrics and gynecologyPrevention, policy, and public healthRelative riskStroke ePublished: 18 February 2003 Issue Published: 18 February 2003 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2003 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...