Important Announcements

Nondiscrimination Statement Update

Boston Medical Center Health System complies with applicable Federal civil rights laws and does not discriminate on the basis of age, race, color, national origin (including limited English proficiency and primary language), religion, culture, physical or mental disabilities, socioeconomic status, sex, sexual orientation and gender identity and/or expression. BMCHS provides free aids and services to people with disabilities and free language services to people whose primary language is not English.

To see our full nondiscrimination statement, click here.

Campus Construction Update

Starting September 14, we’re closing the Menino building lobby entrance. This, along with the ongoing Yawkey building entrance closure, will help us bring you an even better campus experience that matches the exceptional care you've come to expect. Please enter the Menino and Yawkey buildings through the Moakley building, and make sure to leave extra time to get to your appointment. Thank you for your patience. 

Click here to learn more about our campus redesign. 

Hormone Therapy

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Hormone therapy is used to treat cancers that are hormone receptor-positive (meaning there are hormone receptors present in the cells). Breast cancers can be estrogen receptor-positive (ER-positive), progesterone receptor-positive (PR-positive) or both (referred to simply as hormone receptor-positive). 

The female hormone estrogen can fuel cancer growth. Several hormone therapy drugs block the effects of estrogen or lower its levels. Common side effects for these drugs include hot flashes, mild nausea, mood swings, tiredness, and vaginal discharge.

Hormone therapy is also used to reduce the risk of the cancer returning after surgery and to treat advanced-stage cancer.

Hormone therapy drugs used to alter hormone levels are called aromatase inhibitors (AIs). The ovaries produce most of the body’s estrogen before menopause. After menopause, fat tissue produces a small amount of estrogen. Aromatase inhibitors stop fat tissue from making estrogen. These drugs are only useful if the ovaries are no longer making estrogen (i.e., after menopause). They work to lessen the chances of cancer recurring in women who have already gone through menopause. Advanced breast cancers can also be treated using aromatase inhibitors.

Possible side effects associated with AIs include muscle or joint pain and bone thinning. Sometimes switching from one AI to another can relieve side effects. Women who are unable to tolerate the side effects of AIs are often switched to one of the estrogen-blocking drugs.

Luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) analogs are used to shut down the ovaries to lower estrogen levels in premenopausal women. LHRH analogs are mostly used to aid other hormone therapy drugs, though they can be used to treat advanced hormone receptor-positive breast cancers on their own. Possible side effects are similar to those of menopause, including hot flashes, mood swings, night sweats, and vaginal dryness.

Surgery to remove the ovaries can be performed in place of using LHRH analogs to lower estrogen levels in women who have not gone through menopause.

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Breast Cancer Program