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 blood work to ensure the selected therapies are safe as well as effective for you.

Monitoring and Blood work

Bloodwork will be required more frequently during the first year of therapy than it will be afterwards. It is very important to complete routine blood work 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 blood work 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.  

Note: medical transition is still possible if you experience these health considerations

• Cardiac Disease
• Breast or Endometrial Cancer
• Pregnancy or chest feeding

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

• Abnormal bleeding
• Cramping
• Hair loss
• Acne