Ovary Removal - HRT after DCIS diagnosis

Hi,

I'm in a similar situation to you, I have a BRCA1 mutation, had a mastectomy in 2023 and turn 40 later this year so there are discussions about reducing my ovarian cancer risk.

It might be worth while looking up and asking your doctors about the PROTECTOR study. There is a theory that often ovarian cancer starts in the fallopian tubes and then progresses into the ovaries, so they offer a two-step risk reducing surgery - the first part to remove the tubes at the age of 40 and the second part is removing the ovaries once you naturally hit the menopause (both keyhole surgeries). A big advantage is that by keeping your ovaries until you hit the menopause, you get to keep your natural hormones so there is no need for HRT or anything like that. I was temporarily put into a medical menopause during my cancer treatment and I don't want to rush back into it anytime soon!

You can even join the study and have both done at the same time, but it allows them to collect data to help future women. My sister (also brca1) had her tubes removed last year, and it was very straight forward. Wishing you the best of luck with everything xx

Hi Vix,

I'm glad you posted this because I'm also confused about HRT and BRCA. For context I got a positive BRCA2 result last year and had a BSO in Jan. Before the operation I had been on/off HRT for some months due to not always feeling the benefits. I only found out I had BRCA2 in May last year but I had been on HRT for a couple of years prior to that so I was never given advice about possible risks.

After the operation I went back on my usual HRT pretty quickly as I had a lot of symptoms that felt too much to deal with naturally - insomnia, headaches etc. I went to see my GP for an HRT review and she was slightly horrified that I was taking HRT and asked why no one had told me about the risks of taking it with a BRCA2 diagnosis. 

We discussed other options such as having a coil fitted and taking other non hormonal drugs for side effects such as hot flushes. She also referred me to a menopause clinic and I'm waiting for my referral to come through in a couple of weeks. I'll share again once I've been to see the menopause specialist. 

Have you spoken to your own GP for advice about this?

I'm sorry to hear about what you went through last year - I hope you have made a good recovery. I'm waiting for my first MRI appointment after years of annual mammograms. 

Sending you all best wishes x