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Hormone therapy is the most effective treatment for sweating and hot flashes, which are the most common symptoms of the menopause. The initiation of therapy for a healthy female of 50 to 59 years usually entails more health benefits than adverse effects, and there is no absolute upper limit for the duration of the treatment. It remains to be evaluated yearly whether the need or prerequisites for continuation of the treatment still exist. If the use of hormone therapy is not desired, alleviation of hot flashes and sweating can be attempted with life style modifications and other remedies.

Breast cancer is a heterogenous disease and hormonal factors are involved. Since national differences exist in the use of postmenopausal hormone therapy (HT) and other risk factors, associations between HT and breast cancer should be studied nationally. In Finland, estrogen-progestin therapy is associated with higher breast cancer risk than estrogen-only therapy. Also tibolone and levonorgestrel releasing intauterine device combined with estrogen are accompanied with an increased risk of breast cancer. Hormone therapy possibly promotes the growth of the existing undetectable cancer.