Hormone Therapy Monitoring

Bloodwork will be required more frequently during the first year of therapy than it will be afterwards. It is very important to complete routine bloodwork to ensure the selected therapies are safe as well as effective for you.

Monitoring and Bloodwork

Bloodwork will be required more frequently during the first year of therapy than it will be afterwards. It is very important to complete routine bloodwork to ensure the selected therapies are safe as well as effective for you:

Baseline: this will be required before starting any medication so that your Primary Care Provider can get a good sense of where your levels are

• Bloodwork will also be required 1 month, 3 months, 6 months and 1 year after hormones have been initiated to ensure the medications are safe and effective. 
• You may also be asked to do additional bloodwork if you notice any adverse side effects or outcomes from starting hormones (more information on this will be provided below)

Contraindications & Adverse Event Monitoring

Your Primary Care Provider will need to determine if there are any health considerations which may delay a start to hormone therapy. If you experience any of these considerations, it is important to be transparent so that you can be referred appropriately.

• Cardiac Disease
• Active Breast or Pituitary Cancer
• Previous Venous Thromboembolism (VTE): condition in which a blood clot forms in the deep veins of the leg, groin or arm (can also be known as a DVT- Deep Vein Thrombosis)
• Current Smoker

You may also experience some adverse side effects after starting hormone therapy. These side effects may vary depending on the medication you are taking. For more information contact your Primary Care Provider. Some adverse side effects may include

• Thrombosis (VTE, DVT)
• Menopause
• Erectile Dysfunction
• Migraines