FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ñ July 1, 1998
Contact: Ellen Beth Levitt ([email protected])
Ira Allen ([email protected])
Barbara Crawford ([email protected])
410-328-8919
UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND RESEARCHERS INVESTIGATE EFFECTS OF HORMONE REPLACEMENT THERAPY ON UTERINE FIBROIDS
Researchers at the University of Maryland Medical Center are conducting the first controlled clinical study ever to investigate the effects of hormone replacement therapy on uterine fibroids. The $2.4 million study is sponsored by the National Institute for Child Health and Human Development in Bethesda, Md.
"Physicians are divided on treatment, and this study could give clinicians and patients the information they need to make a decision," says principal investigator Kristen Kjerulff (KAIR-awf), Ph.D., associate professor and director of evaluation for the University of Maryland Center of Excellence in Women's Health.
An estimated 75 percent of all women have fibroids, but the noncancerous growths are usually tiny and don't cause problems. As many as 30 percent of women have potentially troublesome fibroids. Although they rarely become cancerous, fibroids can cause pelvic problems, including bleeding, pain, pressure on the kidneys and infertility. About half the women with uterine fibroids will have hysterectomies before reaching menopause.
The purpose of the study is to determine if hormone replacement therapy causes fibroids to grow and/or proliferate. This study will enroll about 200 women in the Baltimore-Washington area who are at least 45 years old, have been diagnosed with uterine fibroids, have reached menopause and have their own physician, who will continue to see them.
Hormone replacement therapy has been shown to be effective in reducing symptoms of menopause, reducing the risk of heart disease and osteoporosis and protecting against Alzheimer's disease.
"The issue of whether women with uterine fibroids should take hormone replacement therapy is an important clinical dilemma," Kjerulff says. "Women with fibroids need to know how the medication will affect them. We also want to look at the effect of hormones on fibroid symptoms such as bleeding and pelvic pain."
Women enrolled in the study will be given ultrasound examinations four times during the two-year enrollment and will be interviewed on a regular basis. Participants will be randomly selected to receive either hormone therapy or a placebo.
Those interested in participating in the study may call 410-706-5563.
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