HRT for BRCA1

Chevyguy

I have this posted on another topic within, but haven't received any responses, so I'll try it here.  I am the husband of a very special lady who is 46 .  We are high school sweethearts that have been together over 30 years and married almost 24 years.  Her family had a high rate of breast cancer, so about 10 years ago, she tested positive for BRCA1.  We were done with having kids, and after 2 years of researching and going back and forth and fighting insurance, we decided to have a double mastectomy with reconstruction with her living tissue from her mid section.  This was followed up with having her ovaries taken out.  Her uteris was left in.  Sorry I don't remember all the technical terms for these surgeries!  Now she's never had cancer at all, this was all preventative.  She's been faithful to keep all of her appoinments with all of the different doctors through the years and always gets a good bill of health including CA127 blood test.  We knew the side effects of these surgeries going in, and the benefits out-weighed the possibility of cancer.  Well, the side effect of vaginal atrophy set in almost immediately.  Our lovemaking has been almost nill because it is so painful for her, and I will not press the issue, but we both miss each other very much and looking for help.  She's had different doctor's along the way say HRT was OK, and others say no due to risk of cancer.  She tried one years ago, Estrace (I think), and it really made her moody and she cried a lot, so she stopped using it.  She didn't use it long enough to see if it helped the atrophy or not.  I've done some research and it seems HRT is OK for her, but haven't found much on how well they work or which ones are better.  Can anyone shed some light for me or point me in a direction to look at?  Thanks.

ladyboss1997

I am BRCA1, have HAD breast cancer, and can't use HRT. I had a full hysterectomy in 2012, and suffer from the same issues. I use Replens. You can buy it OTC. She will have to use it daily for quite a while, but it definitely made a difference with me. We also used alot of lubrication along with it. I found my best deal on amazon.

rgiuff

Talk to her GYN doctor. If she's never had cancer and removed all the potential parts that could get it, she should be able to use HRT. After what she's had to go through, she deserves to have her quality of life taken care of.  A good website for her to learn about the many options out there and read about other's experiences is Hystersisters.com.