Medical Questions » Medicines Questions » Question No. 652
| Question: | 35 years ago I was prescribed Stilboestrol to reduce the risk of miscarriage. 1 understand there may be side effects from this treatment that affect the daughters of those mothers who took the drug. What are these side effects? |
| Answer: | There is evidence that the daughters of women who were treated some decades ago with Stilboestrol are at a higher risk of developing cancer of the endometrium (lining of the uterus) than the average woman in the community.
Women in this situation should advise their general practitioner of the circumstances, so that additional screening tests can be performed, and the woman can be advised of additional risk factors.
Mothers should certainly inform their daughters if they have been given Stilboestrol in these circumstances. The use of this medication in women has ceased now, and has been minimal for the last 20 years.
The earliest symptoms of endometrial cancer are irregular and heavy menstrual bleeding.
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