Hormone therapy or hormonal therapy is the use of

hormones A hormone (from the Ancient Greek, Greek participle , "setting in motion") is a class of cell signaling, signaling molecules in multicellular organisms that are sent to distant organs by complex biological processes to regulate physiology and beh ...

in medical treatment. Treatment with hormone antagonists may also be referred to as hormonal therapy or antihormone therapy. The most general classes of hormone therapy are oncologic hormone therapy, hormone replacement therapy (for menopause),

androgen replacement therapy Androgen replacement therapy (ART), often referred to as testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) or hormone replacement therapy (HRT), is a form of hormone therapy in which androgens, often testosterone, are supplemented or replaced exogenously ...

(ART), oral contraceptive pills, and transgender hormone therapy.

Types

* Hormone replacement therapy (HRT), also known as menopausal hormone therapy (MHT), is for women with menopausal

symptom Signs and symptoms are the observed or detectable signs, and experienced symptoms of an illness, injury, or condition. A sign for example may be a higher or lower temperature than normal, raised or lowered blood pressure or an abnormality showin ...

s. It is based on the idea that the treatment may prevent discomfort caused by diminished circulating estrogen and

progesterone Progesterone (P4) is an endogenous steroid and progestogen sex hormone involved in the menstrual cycle, pregnancy, and embryogenesis of humans and other species. It belongs to a group of steroid hormones called the progestogens and is the m ...

hormones, or in the case of the surgically or prematurely menopausal, that it may prolong life and may reduce incidence of dementia. It involves the use of one or more of a group of medications designed to artificially boost hormone levels. The main types of hormones involved are estrogen,

, or

progestin A progestogen, also referred to as a progestagen, gestagen, or gestogen, is a type of medication which produces effects similar to those of the natural product, natural female sex hormone progesterone in the body. A progestin is a ''synthetic co ...

s, and sometimes, testosterone. It is often referred to as "treatment" rather than therapy. * Hormone replacement therapy for people with hypogonadism and intersex conditions (e.g., Klinefelter syndrome, Turner syndrome) *

Androgen replacement therapy Androgen replacement therapy (ART), often referred to as testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) or hormone replacement therapy (HRT), is a form of hormone therapy in which androgens, often testosterone, are supplemented or replaced exogenously ...

(ART) in males with low levels of testosterone due to disease or aging. It is a hormone treatment often prescribed to counter the effects of male hypogonadism or who for men who have lost their testicular function to disease, cancer, or other causes. It is sometimes used for late-onset hypogonadism (so-called "andropause"), but the significance of a decrease in testosterone levels is debated and its treatment with replacement is controversial. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) stated in 2015 that neither the benefits nor the safety of testosterone have been established in older men with low testosterone levels.. NEJM Perspective piece: . Popular summary: * Transgender hormone therapy for transgender people introduces

sex steroid Sex hormones, also known as sex steroids, gonadocorticoids and gonadal steroids, are steroid hormones that interact with vertebrate steroid hormone receptors. The sex hormones include the androgens, estrogens, and progestogens. Their effects are ...

s associated with the gender that the patient identifies with (notably testosterone for transgender men and estrogen for transgender women). Some intersex and non-binary people may also undergo hormone therapy. Cross-sex hormone treatment for transgender individuals is divided into two main types: feminizing hormone therapy and masculinizing hormone therapy. ** Feminizing hormone therapy in sex reassignment therapy for transgender women ** Masculinizing hormone therapy in sex reassignment therapy for transgender men * Hormonal therapy for cancer ** Androgen deprivation therapy for men with

prostate cancer Prostate cancer is cancer of the prostate. Prostate cancer is the second most common cancerous tumor worldwide and is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related mortality among men. The prostate is a gland in the male reproductive system that sur ...

Estrogen deprivation therapy Estrogen deprivation therapy, also known as endocrine therapy, is a form of hormone therapy that is used in the treatment of breast cancer. Modalities include antiestrogens or estrogen blockers such as selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs) ...

for women with estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer ** High-dose estrogen therapy for women with estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer * Chemical castration of men or sex offenders with paraphilias or hypersexuality * Growth hormone therapy for growth hormone deficiency *

Thyroid hormone File:Thyroid_system.svg, upright=1.5, The thyroid system of the thyroid hormones T3 and T4 rect 376 268 820 433 Thyroid-stimulating hormone rect 411 200 849 266 Thyrotropin-releasing hormone rect 297 168 502 200 Hypothalamus rect 66 216 386 25 ...

replacement in

hypothyroidism Hypothyroidism (also called ''underactive thyroid'', ''low thyroid'' or ''hypothyreosis'') is a disorder of the endocrine system in which the thyroid gland does not produce enough thyroid hormone. It can cause a number of symptoms, such as po ...

* Antithyroid therapy in hyperthyroidism * Glucocorticoid and/or mineralocorticoid replacement in conditions such as Addison's disease * Antiglucocorticoid therapy in Cushing's syndrome *

Insulin Insulin (, from Latin ''insula'', 'island') is a peptide hormone produced by beta cells of the pancreatic islets encoded in humans by the ''INS'' gene. It is considered to be the main anabolic hormone of the body. It regulates the metabolism o ...

therapy in Type 1 Diabetes * Oral contraceptive pills for various purposes including birth control * Menstrual suppression

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hormone Therapy Medical treatments Obstetrical and gynaecological procedures

Types

See also

References