Imagine my surprise when I heard from a fellow blogger that today, October 18, was World Menopause Day! Also imagine my confusion–exactly what is the nature of this special occasion, commemorating menopause (with a side shout-out to perimenopause)? How am I supposed to feel about this holiday?
it might help if we knew what exactly World Menopause Day is all about. According to this site, it’s “a day dedicated to raising awareness of the symptoms and effects of menopause.” Okay, I can get behind that. Of course, there are loads of symptoms and loads of effects, so we might need more than one day to cover all of them.
Never fear, the World Menopause Day (let’s now call it WMD, for fun) organizers have anticipated this issue, so they pick a different set of symptoms or medical theme each year. This year’s theme is: Cardiovascular Disease!
Here’s a list of themes from recent yearly WMD celebrations:
You may wonder, is there any good news or important health advice to share with women during the WMD celebration? Um, well, the flyer does suggest “making positive lifestyle choices”, managing medical risk factors (e.g. high blood pressure) and communicating with your doctor about your medical history. Hmmm. That’s pretty generic. Is there anything more specific to menopause, like new drug treatments or other research results?
Glad you asked. It turns out that there is a new non-hormonal drug that was approved in May 2023 for treating hot flashes, a common and distressing symptom of menopause. The medicine, fezolinetant, marketed under trade name Veozah, significantly reduced the severity of hot flashes compared with placebo. You can look at the phase 3 study results paper here. It’s not known if Veozah is more effective than standard hormone replacement therapy, as those studies haven’t been done (yet? ever? fingers crossed…)
Oh, and it costs $550 USD for a 30-day supply, and (according to an expert quoted here in the New York Times) it’s unclear whether insurance will cover it.
However, it’s early days, so let’s hope both that the cost goes down and access increases. Hot flashes are a serious health and functionality issue, as 75–80% of menopausal women suffer from them, reporting difficulties sleeping at night and managing at work.
Maybe we should start planning for next year’s WMD celebration now. Clearly, women’s health has not been the highest priority for the medical industrial complex or Big Pharma. Perhaps a little more participation and communication are in order. Here’s an idea:
Hey readers, what are you plans for this year’s WMD? Pitchfork parade? Bring your fan to work day? Display unfettered rage because it’s a special occasion? Let us know, and happy menopausal holiday!
