Objective: Evaluation of positive properties and side effects of raloxifene treatment with respect to its potential use as agent to improve women's health and quality of life in postmenopausal years.
Design: A review article.
Setting: Obstetrics and Gynaecology Department, Charles University 2nd Medical Faculty and Teaching Hospital Motol, Prague.
Subject: Estrogen use may protect against osteoporosis and cardiovascular disease, but may increase the risk of breast cancer in long-term treated women and also may increase the risk of irregular uterine bleeding (in combination with gestagen in non-hysterectomized women) in perimenopause and postmenopause. Drugs with tissue-specific estrogenic effects are termed selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERM). Tamoxifen is the first SERM successfully used in the prevention and treatment of breast cancer. Another SERM raloxifene is widely used in the prevention and treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis, especially in women without climacteric complaints. Therapy with raloxifene increases bone mineral density, lowers serum concentrations of total and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and does not stimulate endometrium and breast. Evaluation of another potential positive effects (reducing size of uterine leiomyomas, etc.) warrants further investigation.
Conclusion: Raloxifene can be used in postmenopausal women free of climacteric symptoms for the prevention and treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis with no increased risk of thrombosis and with the advantage of positive side effects during the treatment.