From
The News-Gazette:
Medical experts have tried everything from herbal remedies to anti-depressants to help relieve hot flashes in menopausal women.
Now, researchers at Carle Clinic and more than 100 other medical sites around the country will begin testing a remedy on women that has already been shown to work for men who get hot flashes as a result of hormone treatments for prostate cancer.
The medication being tested,
Pregabalin, is taken orally, and is currently approved to treat nerve pain, fibromyalgia and seizures.
Dr. Kendrith Rowland, principal investigator of oncology research at Carle Clinic, described it as a "safe, non-hormonal drug" that will likely work for women with hot flashes just as it has for men.
Now researchers just need some women willing to try it.
Carle has enrolled nine women in a Pregabalin clinical trial, and is looking for more. Nationwide, the trial will be limited to 192 patients, said Janet Iverson, a clinical research professional at Carle.
It's about time medical science addressed this problem for women, she said.
"We really don't have a good standard of care out there for women who are experiencing this," she added.
Carle is among 123 research locations participating in the Pregabalin trial sponsored by the North Central Cancer Treatment Group based at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.