HRT increases risk of death from lung cancer

Women taking hormone therapy who develop lung cancer are more likely to die from the disease than non-users, research shows. Published in this week’s Lancet, the study of nearly 17,000 postmenopausal women participating in the Women’s Health Initiative found that HRT use was not associated with an increased incidence of lung cancer or larger tumours, but was linked to a 71% increased risk of death in patients who went on to develop lung cancer. Participants were randomised to either a once-daily tablet of 0•625 mg conjugated equine oestrogen plus 2•5 mg medroxyprogesterone acetate or placebo. After 8 years of follow-up the researchers found that more women died from lung cancer in the combined hormone therapy group than in the placebo group (73 vs 40 deaths)....