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Natural menopause after chemical?

Page last modified on: September 10, 2008
Question from Linda: After going through chemical menopause, will I go through a natural one at a later date?
Answers —Julie Gralow, M.D.: By chemical menopause, I assume you mean that you've had chemotherapy-induced menopause. Sometimes the cessation of menstrual periods is temporary, and sometimes it's permanent, even if you're below the age at which you normally would have gone through menopause. So if you have chemotherapy-induced menopause and your periods later return, you will definitely go through natural menopause at some point in the future.

Chemotherapy-induced menopause is more common with some chemotherapy regimens than others. Women in their 30s are much less likely to undergo permanent, chemotherapy-induced menopause than women in their 40s. Older women are more likely to stop having periods after a few cycles of chemotherapy and not get them back.
Marisa Weiss, M.D., president and founder: You can learn more about natural and treatment-induced menopause, as well as medications that can cause menopause-like symptoms, in the Breastcancer.org Managing Menopausal Symptoms section.

On Wednesday, January 15, 2003, our Ask-the-Expert Online Conference was called Managing Treatment Side Effects. Julie Gralow, M.D. and Marisa Weiss, M.D. answered your questions about many of the short-term and long-term side effects of breast cancer treatment, and ways of minimizing them, so you can get on with your life and enjoy your day-to-day activities.

The materials presented in these conferences do not necessarily reflect the views of breastcancer.org. A qualified healthcare professional should be consulted before using any therapeutic product or regimen discussed. All readers should verify all information and data before employing any therapies described here.

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Meet the Experts

Julie Gralow, M.D.Julie Gralow, M.D. is associate professor of medical oncology specializing in breast cancer at the University of Washington and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and director of breast medical oncology at Seattle Cancer Care Alliance.

Marisa Weiss, M.D. is a radiation oncologist specializing in breast cancer and the founder, president, and guiding force behind Breastcancer.org.

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