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A Menopause Primer: Natural, Chemical and Induced Menopause Explained

by Karen Lynch on May 12th, 2008

I thought we all could benefit from a menopause primer.

Let’s start with a general definition. Menopause is defined as the absence of menstrual periods for 12 months. It starts when a woman’s menstrual cycle starts to vary in length and duration and ends when it is clear that the function of the ovaries have ceased — twelve months after the last menstrual period.

So, a woman with regular periods is considered premenopausal. Once her periods start to become irregular, she’s perimenopausal. Twelve months after her last period, she’s post menopausal.

In natural menopause, the ovaries naturally decrease their production of the sex hormones estrogen and progesterone.

I think most people understand what chemical menopause is: menopause induced by chemotherapy or other chemicals or medications.

Induced menopause is menopause induced by an unusual event, such as ovary removal (a bilaterial oophorectomy) or ovary damage (by radiation). Chemical menopause is a form of induced menopause.

Here’s where breast cancer factors into the equation and why all this is important information for survivors:

• Menopause is the end of a woman’s fertile years, her childbearing years. So a young woman looking at induced menopause has to consider her feelings on her fertility. (It is also important to note that while she’s perimenopausal, she could technically still become pregnant, and chemotherapy drugs and hormone therapies and radiation could all harm a fetus if she conceives during her treatment.) These issues need to be discussed with a medical professional prior to beginning treatment.
• With induced menopause there is an abrupt cutoff of ovarian hormones. This can cause the sudden onset of hot flashes and other menopause-related symptoms such as a dry vagina and a decline in sex drive. It’s important that women know where to turn for help with these symptoms and side effects (more to come on this, for sure).
• Early menopause carries a greater risk for heart disease and osteoporosis since there are more years spent beyond the protective cover of estrogen. But now that Hormone Replacement Therapy is linked to a higher breast cancer incidence, all women need to take these complications into consideration and do their best to care for themselves and their health (more to come on this as well).

I’ve got some great resources to share with ya’ll to help you manage your menopausal symptoms — and a fun giveaway as well. Stay tuned!

(Much of the information here I gleaned from medicinenet.com.)

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POSTED IN: Treatment Side Effects, menopause