Impact of postmenopausal hormone therapy on cardiovascular events and cancer: pooled data from clinical trials

Data on cardiovascular events and cancer were usually given incidentally, either as a reason for dropping out of a study or in a list of adverse effects. The calculated odds ratios for women taking hormones versus those not taking hormones was 1.39 (95% confidence interval 0.48 to 3.95) for cardiovascular events without pulmonary embolus and deep vein thrombosis and 1.64 (0.65 to 4.18) with them. It is unlikely that such results would have occurred if the true odds ratio were 0.7 or less. For cancers, the numbers of reported events were too low for a useful conclusion. The results of these pooled data do not support the notion that postmenopausal hormone therapy prevents cardiovascular events.