Menopause Change, Choice and HRT

Menopause Change, Choice and HRT

Menopause: Change, Choice and HRT is about empowering women with the knowledge to make health decisions around menopause that suit their needs and lifestyle.

A woman's menopause is part of her ageing process. It's the beginning of a journey of personal change and growth. However, this new stage of life and how to deal with the emotional and physical changes of it does not come with a road map. Australian authors Dr Barry Wren and Margaret Stephenson Meere have compiled a comprehensive guide to help provide readers with a greater understanding of menopause.

The book covers topics such as:
The mental, physical and emotional effects of menopause
The case for and against hormone replacement therapy
Choices available for women to treat menopause symptoms

Menopause: Change, Choice and HRT is a must have book for all women as they embark on this stage of their life.


Dr. Barry Wren is a NSW-based gynaecologist who has been involved in research into the influence that ovarian hormones have on the health of a woman. He has worked for 40 years in researching the facts of the menopause and its treatment.


Margaret Stephenson Meere has worked alongside women as a midwife and child and family health nurse, with a belief that primary healthcare and education contribute to a healthy life. She is the best-selling author of Baby's First 100 Days and The Child Within the Lotus. She is based in NSW.


Menopause Change, Choice and HRT
Rockpool Publishing
Authors: Dr. Barry Wren and Margaret Stephenson Meere
ISBN: 9781921878695
RRP: $24.99

Interview with Dr. Barry Wren

Question: What inspired you to write Menopause Change, Choice and HRT?

Dr. Barry Wren: The controversial results reported by the Writing Group for the flawed Women's Health Initiative study was so confusing to both women and their doctors that no one really understood what was important, what was significant and what should be advised regarding the management of the Menopause. Because of that confusion and resulting controversy, I decided to review the whole history, scientific data and therapy regimens currently being recommended for women. I decided to avoid bias and personal opinion where possible, but instead provide scientific information and data in as simple a manner as possible so that a woman and her doctor could review the information and decide for themselves whether to use oestrogen therapy or not.


Question: Who did you write Menopause Change, Choice and HRT for?

Dr. Barry Wren: My target audience was initially expected to be post-menopausal women but it was also evident that general practitioners and some specialists would also gain a benefit or a better knowledge of the menopause and therapy options by reading the book.


Question: What's different about this book in comparison to other books on Menopause?

Dr. Barry Wren: MENOPAUSE Change, Choice and HRT is a book written in a style that simplifies the scientific information, and explains the reasons for symptoms, physical changes, pathological outcomes and management principals in a manner that is easily understood both by a woman and her doctor. Most other books on the menopause that have been written for women have been personalised with the authors own biases, opinions and interpretation of how to treat women in the menopause or have been written by scientists with the express purpose of educating doctors. Both styles of writing fail to satisfy an educational or advisory role for women. This book (MENOPAUSE, Change Choice and HRT) has consciously avoided where possible any attempt to persuade a woman or a doctor to follow a regimen but if a woman has chosen to begin therapy, the timing, the delivery system, the length of treatment and the expected outcomes is discussed in full.


Question: How did you go about outlining the case for and against hormone replacement therapy and alternative therapies?

Dr. Barry Wren: Throughout the book, I have presented the scientific data gathered over the past 70 years in a simple and straight-forward manner in order to explain the benefits and the adverse results of hormone deficiency versus the results obtained when using oestrogen based HRT. Women who are deficient in oestrogen have an increased risk of osteoporotic fractures, heart attacks and dementia compared to women who begin oestrogen based HRT at the time of their menopause. These results and the data is not in question. What is controversial is the suggestion that HRT causes breast cancer and thrombosis. These two adverse events are discussed in full and the potential negative findings are given considerable importance throughout the book, together with the most recent biological information on the initiation of breast cancer and the cause of thrombosis. The findings of recent scientific studies suggest that breast cancer is not increased by oestrogen therapy and that the risk of thrombosis is only evident when oestrogen is administered by mouth. The implications of these findings has a considerable impact on the long-term use of HRT, Every study involving oestrogen based HRT administered for more than 10 years to post menopausal women confirms that such HRT results in a lower mortality, prolongation of life and increasing improvement in health.


Question: Do you stand for or against hormone replacement therapy?

Dr. Barry Wren: I am an advocate for women being offered the choice to use an oestrogen based HRT but only prescribe it when a woman herself has made the decision that she wishes to use that form of therapy. She can only make such a decision if she has sufficient knowledge. It was to provide that knowledge I wrote the book. A doctors role is to explain and provide information - he/she should not make that decision for any woman but should provide her with the information to allow her to make an informed choice. If she elects to begin hormone therapy, then it is his/her role to prescribe the most appropriate regimen of oestrogen based HRT.

Interview by Brooke Hunter