Experts hope to 'end' menopause using hormone therapy

A woman's reproductive health system. Menopause typically occurs in women between the age of 49 and 52. FILE PHOTO

What you need to know:

  • The research is still in the early stages, but provides a new avenue of research.
  • It will take more time and research before a long-term synthetic ovary could be considered.

Human organs engineered in a laboratory could soon provide a cure for menopause.

This means that advances in reproductive science could reverse the condition, which typically occurs in women between the age of 49 and 52.

A 1997 University of Nairobi study carried out on 1,078 women in western Kenya, however, found that the average age for women reaching menopause was 48, with all subjects interviewed being menopausal by 55.

Researchers are looking into the engineered organs as an innovative new method to treat a number of medical conditions.

HORMONES
A new study examined the possibility of developing synthetic ovaries to treat symptoms associated with menopause and post-menopause symptoms.

While hormone replacement therapy (HRT) can manage most menopause symptoms, research released in the early 2000s found that HRT administered to women in form of oils or a patch could significantly increase their risk of heart ailments, certain cancers and stroke.

Due to these risks, doctors and researchers have been looking for newer, safer options to replace hormones in women.

One possibility could be implanting synthetic ovaries, which mimic real ovaries and provide the hormones at lower doses.

SYNTHETIC OVARIES

A woman’s menopause symptoms can then be diminished without increasing the risk of cancer and heart disease.

Researchers from the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine were able to create “biosynthetic” ovaries to implant in rats to see if they could mitigate some menopause symptoms.

According to the study published earlier this month on Nature Communications, the ovary did not make eggs that would result in the rats becoming fertile.

“The treatment is designed to secrete hormones in a natural way based on the body’s needs, rather than the patient taking a specific dose of drugs each day,” Dr Emmanuel Opara, senior author and professor of regenerative medicine at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Centre, said in a statement.

RESEARCH
Dr Opara and his co-authors found that the rats with the engineered ovaries appeared to have better bone density than the rats that received the equivalent of low hormone therapy replacement.

“This study highlights the potential usefulness of cell-based hormone therapy for the treatment of conditions associated with the stoppage of ovaries’ functions,” Dr Opara said.

The research is still in the early stages, but provides a new avenue of research, which is key to finding better ways to help women.

It will take more time and research before a long-term synthetic ovary could be considered.