PRESS RELEASEContact:Maureen Nagg, 216.213.2844, naggm@ccf.orgHORMONE-BLOCKING DRUG ADMINISTERED DURING CHEMOTHERAPY PREVENTS OVARIAN FAILURE AND IMPROVES FERTILITY IN BREAST CANCER PATIENTSFindings of International Study to be Published in New England Journal of MedicineWednesday, March 4, 2015, Cleveland: Breast cancer patients who are given the hormone-blocking drug goserelin during chemotherapy are less likely to experience ovarian failure and more likely to have successful pregnancies,…

A new study suggests that people who lose as little as half an hour of sleep on a weekday have change in their metabolism that might help them gain weight and that might even put them on the road to diabetes.A new study suggests that people who lose as little as half an hour of sleep on a weekday have change in their metabolism that might help them gain weight and that might even put them on the road to diabetes.They were taking part in a different study meant to see if exercise and diet would…

Adults who sleep more than eight hours a night may face a higher risk of stroke, a new analysis suggests. These so-called "long sleepers" were 46 percent more likely to have a stroke than those who got only six to eight hours of sleep a night, the researchers found. However, the researchers don't know if the long sleep is a cause, consequence or early warning sign of declining brain health. After reviewing previous research on the possible link between sleep and stroke risk, they said they…

A new study suggests that peanut allergy can be prevented at a young age by embracing peanuts, not avoiding them. Eating peanut products as a baby significantly reduces the risk of developing the allergy by 80% in high-risk infants, a study in the New England Journal of Medicine suggests. Peanuts are one of the leading causes of food allergy reaction and can be fatal.

Speaking of Women's Health has joined the Read Aloud 15 MINUTES National Campaign that encourages all parents to know, if you wait to read, it's too late.Before elementary school. Before kindergarten. Before preschool. Children are learning. Not just learning; they are building the foundations that will support their education for years to come. Science has proved that birth to age 5 is perhaps the most important period of development in a child's life. That's why Speaking of Women's Health…

Some women experienced hot flashes and night sweats for more than 7 years during menopausal transition, researchers reported. Among a diverse group of women in the U.S. who reported a high frequency of symptoms, vasomotor symptoms (VMS) persisted for a median of 7.4 years, with a median of 4.5 years of symptoms after final menstrual period, according to Nancy E. Avis, PhD, of Wake Forrest School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, N.C., and colleagues. These findings exceeded the length of VMS…

Physician WritersMegan McNamaraPelin BaturKristi Tough DeSapri Diagnosis What is perimenopause? Perimenopause is a transitional time late in a woman's reproductive life before the final menstrual period (FMP). Menopause is de-fined retrospectively by 12 months of amenorrhea and loss of ovarian follicular activity. The mean duration of perimenopause is 5 years, but symptoms may begin 8 years or more before the FMP (1). The average age at onset of menstrual irregularity is 47.5 years (2).…

Biology determines when women hit menopause, but exposure to some common household products and pollutants may drive that timing even earlier.Menopause, like puberty, is a reproductive rite of passage, and marks for women the end of their fertility and child-bearing years. But studies show that it’s not just age that can determine when menopause starts — exposure to certain chemicals and pollutants can also play a role.In one of the most comprehensive looks at possible menopause-disruptors to…

NBC News reports that the FDA has approved a test that allows physicians to more easily measure "a fairly new indicator of heart disease risk — one that is especially helpful for African-American women." The test "measures the inflammation caused by the buildup of dangerous gunk in the arteries and can show a patient risks having a heart attack or a stroke even if she doesn't have high cholesterol."

Philip Sarrel, M.D. is the Founder and President of The Advancing Health After Hysterectomy Foundation, Inc., a non-profit corporation registered in Connecticut whose position statement is "Estrogen is the only menopause treatment that treats symptoms, prevents disease and saves lives."

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Gardasil 9 (Human Papillomavirus 9-valent Vaccine, Recombinant) for the prevention of certain diseases caused by nine types of Human Papillomavirus (HPV). Covering nine HPV types, five more HPV types than Gardasil (previously approved by the FDA), Gardasil 9 has the potential to prevent approximately 90 percent of cervical, vulvar, vaginal and anal cancers.

Running may reverse aging in certain ways while walking does not, a noteworthy new study of active older people finds. The findings raise interesting questions about whether most of us need to pick up the pace of our workouts in order to gain the greatest benefit.

Did you feed your baby’s brain today?

That’s a question that Speaking of Women’s Health and its partner, Read Aloud 15 MINUTES, want parents and caregivers everywhere to answer with a resounding, “Yes!”

The steep decline in the use of hormone therapy has spawned a prevalent but preventable side effect: millions of women suffering in silence with hot flashes, according to a study by a Yale School of Medicine researcher and colleagues.

Ruth Davis, Pelin Batur, MD, FACP, NCMP, CCD, and Holly L Thacker, MD, FACP, NCMP, CCD ABSTRACT After the publication of the Women’s Health Initiative, attitudes towards management of menopausal symptoms changed dramatically. One alternative that has received much media attention is the use of bioidentical hormone therapy (BHT). The media and celebrity endorsements have promoted a number of misconceptions about the risks and benefits associated with the various forms of BHT. This article will…

Those of you tanning or burning your skin this summer should stop — seek the shade, wear a hat and some sunscreen and, whatever you do, stay out of indoor tanning salons. It's a familiar skin-cancer prevention message, but it's coming from a new source: the office of the U.S. Surgeon General. Nearly 5 million people in the United States are treated for skin cancer each year, at a cost of $8.1 billion, the report says. About 63,000 cases are the most serious kind, melanoma, and about 6,000 of…

Testing for human papillomavirus (HPV) may be the best way to know whether a woman is at risk of developing cervical cancer in the near future, according to a new study. Negative HPV tests provided women with more reliable assurance that they wouldn’t develop cancer or other abnormal cervical changes in the next three years, compared to traditional Pap tests, researchers report.

Bladder leakage is one of many health-related issues Dr. Holly L. Thacker of the Cleveland Clinic Center for Specialized Women's Health addresses in this interview. She explains that there is non-surgical therapy available to help remedy the problem, and that there is an unexpected, but not unwelcome side effect of the newly FDA approved pelvic stimulation devices now available to strengthen the pelvic floor or relax an overactive bladder.

Using sunlamp products such as tanning beds or tanning booths increases the risk of skin damage, skin cancer and eye injury, according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and numerous other health organizations. A particularly dangerous result is melanoma, the deadliest type of skin cancer.

By Holly L. Thacker, M.D. In October 2013, the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) investigators published a comprehensive overview of findings from their two hormone therapy (HT) trials, including extended follow-up representing 13 years of cumulative data.1 When I analyzed this latest WHI report, I initially focused almost exclusively on the data presented in figures and tables within the article itself, as well as on supplemental data presented on the Internet.2 Only then did I read the…