Novofem

What is Novofem?

Novofem tablets are a hormone replacement therapy (HRT) treatment. It’s a combination of two hormones: estradiol and norethisterone acetate.

Estradiol is the same kind of oestrogen that’s naturally found in your body. Norethisterone acetate is a synthetic progestogen that mimics progesterone. These hormones work to relieve post menopausal symptoms and to protect your bones from osteoporosis.

How does Novofem work?

After the menopause, the level of oestrogen in your body drops dramatically. This prevents future pregnancy and stops the menstrual cycle. In addition to marking the end of a woman’s fertility, there are a lot of symptoms menopausal and post-menopausal women may experience. These symptoms can include hot flushes, night sweats, fatigue, and more.

Novofem HRT increases the levels of oestrogen in your body. This helps to relieve post-menopausal symptoms that interfere with your daily life, and prevent brittle bones caused by osteoporosis.

But without another hormone to keep it in check, the oestrogen in HRT treatments can cause the uterine lining to grow more than it should, and this may increase your risk of endometrial cancer. The progesterone in combined HRT medications like Novofem keeps the oestrogen under control, and helps to protect you from that risk.

Who is Novofem for?

Novofem is for women who have started going through the menopause. It’s recommended for women who have had a period in the last 12 months.

Women who have a history of the following conditions should not take Novofem:

• breast cancer
• endometrial or other oestrogen dependent cancers
• blood clots
• unexplained vaginal bleeding
• porphyria

This list is not exhaustive. You can find more details in the package information leaflet that comes with your treatment, or you can sign in to your Treated account and ask our clinical team for more information.

How to use Novofem

If Novofem is your first prescription HRT, you can start it any time. However, if you’re switching from another HRT you’ll need to ask our clinician when you should begin.

Novofem tablets come in packs of 28 pills. There are 16 red tablets and 12 white tablets. Take one each day around the same time. You should take them in the order they are in the package. Take your pill with a glass of water.

After you finish a pack, start a new pack without taking any breaks. You may experience bleeding similar to a period at the beginning of each pack.

Novofem reviews

HRT can reduce the likelihood of sleeping disorders, bone density and concentration disorders, and relieve menopausal symptoms such as night sweats, hot flushes and vaginal dryness by up to 75%. It can also reduce the intensity of these symptoms by up to 87%. So they can be very effective treatment options.

What dose of Novofem is right for me?

Our clinician will start you on the lowest dose of HRT for the shortest amount of time possible. This is because there are risks and side effects with HRT, like any other drug.

If your HRT dose is causing a lot of side effects, it may be too high. Tell our clinician and they will lower your dose. Likewise, if your symptoms aren’t alleviated with the lowest dose, our clinician can raise it so you can get relief from your post-menopausal symptoms.

Novofem is a low dose HRT that is only available in 1 mg estradiol and 1 mg norethisterone acetate. If this is not a suitable dose for you, our clinician can suggest a HRT that is more appropriate for your needs.