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Original poster

No availability of HRT patches

222 replies

Egghead68 · 11/08/2019 13:16

Hi - my foray into HRT will be short-lived, it seems (3 weeks in total) due to lack of availability of HRT treatments in my area.

I was on Evorel Conti, which can't be obtained now (I had 6 patches which my pharmacist said were the last ones). I have asked my GP if they will prescribe an alternative but they have not got back to me and my patch runs out on Tuesday. In any case, it seems there are low/no stocks of most/all forms here due to people having to switch.

Anyone else had this problem and got any suggestions?

Thank you in advance!

OP posts:
AutumnCrow · 24/08/2019 18:35

Thanks @JinglingHellsBells, your posts and this thread have been an eye-opener. Neither my GP surgery (8 GPs, not a small practice) nor the five different pharmacies & pharmacists I've visited and talked to offered a single alternative solution.

I learned those potential solutions on here.

JinglingHellsBells · 24/08/2019 19:42

@autmncrow Are you using estrogen only? You have the option of tablets, another patch (Estradot though it's flying off the shelves) and 2 brands of gel.

AutumnCrow · 24/08/2019 20:01

Yes,@Jingling, just oestrogen. Happy with the idea of gel, definitely. Thank you.

KatyMac · 24/08/2019 21:01

@JinglingHellsBells - I'm on Evoral Conti as I still have my uterus; can I have gel and micronised progesterone?

JinglingHellsBells · 25/08/2019 07:18

Katy- yes of course you can. It's mainstream HRT. There are plenty of options instead of patches- a different patch, estrogen only pill or gel, and a separate progestogen (Norethisterone, the mini pill, Utrogestan or the Mirena coil)

KatyMac · 25/08/2019 10:10

Thanks - I want as little as I can do away with - for me the oestrogen seems to kill the symptoms but I know I 'have' to take the progesterone

The GP refused me gel and I had a massive fight to get patches rather than tablets - but my liver is enlarged already so I want it to deal with as little extra as possible

& we wont talk about the "stop reading things on the internet, I am the doctor and I know best" comment as she put me on sequi! it too k 3 months to get it changed to conti!

borntobequiet · 25/08/2019 10:19

Not sure how significant the Johnson and Johnson withholding supplies mentioned upthread is but our current Ambassador from the US is Woody Johnson of the pharmaceutical family.
www.politicshome.com/news/uk/foreign-affairs/news/104289/us-will-want-business-access-nhs-post-brexit-trade-deal

JinglingHellsBells · 25/08/2019 10:55

The GP refused me gel

Sorry but don't understand this- why refused?
Did she say why?
It's not a cost issue. I pay for my own on a private prescription and it's under £10 a month- think that's cheaper than some patches.

KatyMac · 25/08/2019 11:26

I dont think she liked me knowing what I wanted and asking for it

She refused me conti and only prescribed sequi - because I had periods until the operation so I hadn't had a year free

As I say it took 3 months and a nurse practitioner to get me on conti

JinglingHellsBells · 25/08/2019 11:41

I dont think she liked me knowing what I wanted and asking for it

Is she a child doctor or a mature adult?

That has to be one of the silliest things Ive ever read here.

It's appalling.

Can't you change your GP or pay to see a consultant as a one-off and then perhaps get what you need on repeat from GP?

KatyMac · 25/08/2019 11:49

Well the nurse practitioner is lovely once I got to see her (and I'll make sure I see her again)

I regularly have problems with my GP so I think it's me not them

AutumnCrow · 25/08/2019 18:04

www.mdedge.com/obgyn/article/61637/estradiol-gel-new-option-hormone-replacement-therapy/page/0/1

I've just read the above study ^^

Why on earth isn't gel more widely promoted? My GP surgery have never, ever suggested it or acknowledged its existence, not have any of the many pharmacies I've recently contacted.

JinglingHellsBells · 25/08/2019 18:10

Why on earth isn't gel more widely promoted?

For the same reason what most women get poor meno treatment for a GP. They get no training. That's why there is a petition and a campaign to try to make meno training mandatory for GPs.

Most GPs are not 'capable' of prescribing gel because they then have to figure out which progestin to offer and the correct dose. It's beyond them, to be frank. not ALL of course, but they resort to ready-made pills and patches.

KatyMac · 25/08/2019 19:10

And as for getting testosterone - you'd think you were asking for morphine

AutumnCrow · 25/08/2019 19:22

Very pleased to see this Guardian headline - the more acknowledgment the better.

www.theguardian.com/society/2019/aug/25/mandatory-workplace-menopause-policies-uk

KatyMac · 26/08/2019 09:43

Any info in any of the Sunday papers about the actual reason for the shortage?

AutumnCrow · 26/08/2019 10:15

Not that I can see.

The whole thing seems to have 'NDA' written all over it, ie it actually is Brexit-related - either govt stockpiling causing the shortage or pharmaceutical companies' behaviour in anticipation of Brexit trading conditions causing the shortage.

Other countries are just not being affected like the UK is.

I could be wrong, obvs.

KatyMac · 26/08/2019 10:34

& then they say we are being conspiracy theorists!

Flatliner · 26/08/2019 11:00

I asked my pharmacist, they don't know anything about any shortages in my area and I got my patches this month.

rosie39forever · 26/08/2019 11:19

I rang 15 pharmacies in my area on Saturday morning and not one had or could get any type of patch or gel and one of the pharmacists knew why as they had received no information from wholesalers or the nhs.

rosie39forever · 26/08/2019 11:20

That should be not one of the pharmacists.

dementedma · 26/08/2019 11:25

I'm in Scotland. Put my prescription in for conti patches last week and got them the next day

ByeByeMissAmericanPie · 26/08/2019 11:49

Boris and the Government in general have absolutely NO IDEA just how dreadful the wrath of several million menopausal women without HRT are going to be.

I'm horrified about the theories behind the shortages. It cannot be an adhesive problem if its obtainable elsewhere.

I'm on Estradot 75mg and just about managed to get a 3 month prescription about 10 days ago, but only after ringing round several pharmacies.

I'm very interested to hear about what people are able to get overseas... If I have to get a cheap flight to Spain to get 3 month supply, then so be it. Once I run out, the flights should be cheaper anyway... What about places like Dubai?

In terms of eeking out your patches, my GP said she often forgot to change hers, and only when the hot flushes kicked in, did she remember to stick a new patch on. I follow a similar path, and can often get a week out of one patch. I'm hoping to stretch my 3 months into at least 4 months or longer.

Maybe worth a try?

ByeByeMissAmericanPie · 26/08/2019 11:49

Just seen dementedma is in Scotland.

Anyone in Wales...?

AutumnCrow · 26/08/2019 12:24

I read that there are a million women in the UK are on HRT. That's a lot of pissed off voters.

Also now that compounded HRT (personalised versions from private clinics) is being criticised, that will presumably increase pressure the NHS to provide even more of the 'regular' prescribed HRT that there's a fecking shortage of because of this publicity?

www.theguardian.com/society/2019/aug/26/menopause-experts-say-compounded-hrt-is-unsafe

Or is this all down to shady pharmaceuticals activity, e.g. lobbying, spin and making money??