Researchers sound warning about women with type 2 diabetes taking oral hormone replacement therapy

Medical Xpress / Annual Meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes ^ | Sept. 14, 2025 | Dr. Matthew Anson et al

[ConservativeMind]

In women with type 2 diabetes (T2D), use of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) skin patches is not associated with a higher risk of blood clots or stroke. However, an increased cardiovascular risk was found for oral HRT, according to a large real-world study.

Among the findings are an analysis revealing women with T2D who took the oral form of HRT doubled their risk of developing a pulmonary embolism (PE—when a blood clot blocks an artery in the lung) and faced a 21% increased risk of heart disease compared with those receiving transdermal HRT (skin patches).

"Our study suggests that up to five years of regulator-approved doses of transdermal HRT appears safe in a large cohort of women in midlife with T2D and that the use of HRT skin patches is not associated with an excess increased risk of cardiovascular complications or estrogen-sensitive cancers when compared to women with T2D who did not use HRT," said Dr. Matthew Anson.

"However, given increased risks with oral HRT, we propose that women with T2D should not be prescribed oral estrogen therapy."

Researchers conducted three analyses using real-world data to examine regulator-approved oral and transdermal (through the skin) HRT doses and the risk of cardiovascular disease and gynecological and estrogen-related cancers in women with T2D.

They used electronic health records from the TriNetX global database to identify 36,855 women (average age 59 years) initiating HRT + statin or a statin alone (controls), with follow up for 5-years.

Compared to women not taking HRT, women using HRT had a 25% reduced risk of heart disease, but no difference in risk for PE, DVT, stroke, or cancer.

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TOPICS: Health/Medicine
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[ConservativeMind]

Hormone replacement therapy appears to work for women without Type 2 diabetes and may be okay as a transdermal patch for those with Type 2 diabetes, but the numbers from one of the studies done showed a fairly higher cardio complication rate for women using estrogen patches with Type 2 diabetes, versus women using the same patches, but without diabetes.

I couldn’t fit that information into the excerpt, but it would tell me Type 2 diabetes is the thing I would most seek to prevent or get rid of, regardless of HRT.

Keto us one way to put Type 2 diabetes into remission. Weight loss can do it for some, as well. There are other approaches, too.

[ConservativeMind]

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