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Experimental pill can ease hot flashes for women in menopause, new data suggests
More than 75% of women experience menopause-related hot flashes during their lives — and an experimental pill could help ease them, a new study suggests.
In a study published in JAMA Thursday, researchers found the drug, elinzanetant, demonstrated “statistically significant reductions” in the frequency and severity of hot flashes for women in menopause — without the use of hormones.
Not using hormones in the drug is important because it’s not a safe option for everyone, Dr. Céline Gounder, CBS News medical contributor and editor-at-large for public health at KFF Health News, said on “CBS Mornings” Friday.
“Some women cannot take hormones, so maybe they’ve had breast cancer, heart attacks, stroke, blood clots,” she said, adding some women are also afraid to take hormones. “This dates back to a study that was done over 20 years ago on hormone replacement therapy. There were a lot of problems with that study, and now, in retrospect, we understand for the vast majority of women, hormone replacement therapy is safe, and I think that’s really important to emphasize that, because a lot of women are not using it, who could be using it, but now we have some alternatives for women who can’t or don’t want to take hormone replacement.”
The two main side effects seen in the clinical trials were headache and fatigue, but longer-term effects are still unknown.
“This is on data that’s been reported out to 26 weeks of use. So obviously, women would be on these medications for much longer. Are there longer term side effects? We don’t know,” Gounder said.
Exactly how soon the medication could be available is also unknown. But Bayer, the company that makes it, submitted an application over the summer to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and expects to hear back in September.
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Yellowstone hiker burned when she falls into scalding water near Old Faithful, park officials say
Yellowstone National Park, Wyo. — A New Hampshire woman suffered severe burns on her leg after hiking off-trail in Yellowstone National Park and falling into scalding water in a thermal area near the Old Faithful geyser, park officials said.
The 60-year-old woman from Windsor, New Hampshire, along with her husband and their leashed dog were walking off a designated trail near the Mallard Lake Trailhead on Monday afternoon when she broke through a thin crust over the water and suffered second- and third-degree burns to her lower leg, park officials said. Her husband and the dog weren’t injured.
The woman was flown to Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center in Idaho Falls, Idaho for treatment.
National Park Service / Jacob W. Frank
Park visitors are reminded to stay on boardwalks and trails in hydrothermal areas and exercise extreme caution. The ground in those areas is fragile and thin and there’s scalding water just below the surface, park officials said.
Pets are allowed in limited, developed areas of Yellowstone park but are prohibited on boardwalks, hiking trails, in the backcountry and in thermal areas.
The incident is under investigation. The woman’s name wasn’t made public.
This is the first known thermal injury in Yellowstone in 2024, park officials said in a statement. The park had recorded 3.5 million visitors through August this year.
Hot springs have injured and killed more people in Yellowstone National Park than any other natural feature, the National Park Service said. At least 22 people have died from hot spring-related injuries in and around the 3,471-square-mile national park since 1890, park officials have said.