Table 2.
Reasons Given by Women Who Used Menopausal Hormone Therapy 2005–2006 and Attempted Discontinuation, by Discontinuation Success
| Reason tried to quit HT | Not successful n=337% yes | Successfully quit HT n=465% yes |
|---|---|---|
| Fear of breast cancer | 22.3 | 18.9 |
| Doctor advised against HT (p≤0.001)a | 20.8 | 30.8 |
| Side effects of HT | 17.8 | 15.9 |
| Media advised against HT (p≤0.01) | 16.3 | 13.8 |
| No need, symptoms were gone, therapy was done | 14.2 | 12.3 |
| Dislike pills (p≤0.01) | 11.0 | 5.6 |
| Fear of heart disease or stroke | 10.1 | 9.0 |
| Symptoms were gone | 3.6 | 6.0 |
| Symptoms did not improve (p≤0.001) | 1.8 | 7.3 |
| Menopause is natural, medication is not needed, wanted natural menopause experience | 3.0 | 2.8 |
| Vaginal bleeding (p≤0.05) | 0.9 | 3.0 |
| Already taking too many medications | 2.7 | 1.3 |
| Fear of blood clots | 2.1 | 2.4 |
| Developed other health problems that were not related to hormone use, such as diabetes, cancer (p≤0.001) | 1.8 | 7.3 |
Responses were to the question “What are the reasons that you have tried to stop using estrogen pills or patches?” Responses were for first quit attempt, and all responses were recorded.
a
All p values based on chi-square tests.