What is HRT? How the menopause treatment works and why there's a shortage of gels and patches in the UK

A new hormone replacement therapy (HRT) tsar has been appointed to help deal with an acute shortage of the medication.

Madelaine McTernan, who previously worked on the nationwide Covid vaccine rollout, will address the shortages of some HRT products, including gels and patches.

More than one million women in the UK use HRT to treat symptoms of menopause such as migraines and hot flushes.

Some women have resorted to sharing prescriptions, buying HRT on the black market, or getting friends abroad to buy it for them.

HRT is hormone replacement therapy which relieves the symptoms of menopause, according to the NHS.

Most women take a combination of the hormones oestrogen and progestogen and the medication can be taken as tablets, skin patches, gels and vaginal creams, pessaries or rings.

Women who do not have a womb can take oestrogen on its own.

The treatment works by replacing hormones which your body stops producing as you go through menopause or when you have surgery to remove your ovaries.

Some form of HRT is used by around one million women in the UK to treat symptoms of menopause, according to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice).

According to the NHS, HRT products help to treat most symptoms of the menopause, including:

• hot flushes
• night sweats
• mood swings
• vaginal dryness
• reduced sex drive

The shortage of HRT products has been blamed on manufacturing and supply issues brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The shortages are primarily affecting Oestogel, manufactured by Besins Healthcare UK, as well as other products, including FemSeven Sequi patches.

Besins reported insufficient supplies due to an increased demand for HRT products in the UK. The company said it is receiving regular deliveries, but its current supply is sometimes not enough to meet demand.

There has been a greater demand for the medication with the number of prescriptions for HRT in England doubling in the last five years to more than 500,000 a month.

Caroline Nokes, the Conservative MP and chair of the women and equalities committee, told BBC Radio 4’s Women’s Hour that demand has been growing over several years.

“We shouldn’t be reduced to swapping HRT in car parks,” she said. “This is about making sure that we have consistency of supply because this isn’t an unexpected spike. This is a growing demand that has been building over the last few years so it’s absolutely crucial that we get not just a tsar in place, but somebody who’s going to bring about immediate action.”

Ms Nokes added that she too was low on her HRT medication and will run out on Tuesday.

She said she is relying on a “lovely colleague” to bring her some medication this week, but added that she feels “uncomfortable” about it.