‘Erratic’ supplies of essential HRT medication leaving women in the lurch

CONCERN and fear among women receiving Hormone Replacement Therapy is growing as supplies of the essential medication remain ‘erratic’, the Irish Pharmacy Union chairwoman has said.

Kathy Maher said there is a noticeable reduction in the availability of important medications for menopausal women in Ireland.

Ms Maher, who is also a community pharmacist in Haven Pharmacy, Duleek, Co. Meath, said shortages in the supply of various hormone replacement therapies has led women to frequently switch the forms of HRT they use.

She said: ‘The supply has been erratic. There has been times when one form of HRT is unavailable, so patients on a patch would have to switch to a transdermal spray or a gel and then, when that supply ran out, would have to return to a patch. It’s difficult for patients not to be able to remain on a consistent form of medication.

She said that when patients hear a medication has run out, there is a worry that they may go without HRT, risking a return of their symptoms.

In January, women reported an inability to buy the popular Evorel Conti hormone patch, other Evorel patches and the Estradot patch.

While Everel has returned, Estradot supplies ran out earlier this year, leaving women to deal with their symptoms, or switch to an alternate therapy, until the drug is available in July.

Oestrogel, one of the more popular gel HRT products, has not been available for more than six weeks but is expected to be available from this week. Another gel, Divigel, has also suffered supply glitches this year.

Ms Maher said: ‘We are doing absolutely everything we can to reduce the impact and stress on patients who are not able to access the treatment that they are currently on’.

She said there has been a significant demand for HRT here in recent years due to information campaigns raising awareness of menopause treatments.

In a statement, a spokeswoman for Estradot manufacturer Novartis said: ‘We have significantly increased supplies of our

HRT medication into Ireland on a number of occasions since 2021. We hope this situation with Estradot will be resolved in July.’