Experiencing hot flashes and night sweats due to menopause? FDA approves new hormone-free drug

If you're in your late 40s and 50s, you may be familiar with experiencing a sudden rush of heat in your upper body. Or even waking up soaked in sweat. These are widely known as hot flashes and night sweats, common symptoms of perimenopause or menopause - a phase in which a women's reproductive cycle starts coming to an end. The transition is difficult, especially with the stigma around it and hormone replacement therapy (HRT). While women are mostly talk about their struggles in hushed tones, health organisations are increasingly looking at ways to help women manage menopause better. In a latest move, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Lynkuet, a new daily pill from Bayer, offering a hormone-free option to help reduce hot flashes.

When women go through menopause, levels of estrogen - one of the two key sex hormones in women - drop. This can lead to hot flashes. Lynkuet helps by blocking specific receptors in the brain, which calms the pathways that cause hot flashes and related sleep problems. This drug went through three clinical trials with over 2,000 women who had moderate to severe hot flashes. The results, published in JAMA and JAMA Internal Medicine, showed that women taking Lynkuet had about 55% fewer hot flashes after just 12 weeks compared to those taking a placebo. Many participants started to feel relief within a couple of weeks.

“It’s important that women know they have choices for treating moderate to severe hot flashes due to menopause. This approval further expands a woman’s options for treating these symptoms,” Claire Gill, President and Founder of the National Menopause Foundation, said in a Bayer press statement.

They also experienced better sleep and an overall improved quality of life. This is very important because traditional hormone therapy isn’t an option for women battling breast cancer. With Lynkuet, they will have a safer alternative to manage those difficult symptoms without using hormones.

No serious liver injuries were found in studies of Lynkuet that lasted up to a year, but monitoring is still ongoing. Pregnant women or those who might get pregnant should avoid Lynkuet because animal studies suggest it could cause pregnancy problems.

Lynkuet has been approved, which means there are now more options for treating hot flashes.

“This treatment focuses on the biological reasons behind hot flashes instead of just using hormonal therapies," Dr Jayashree Nagaraj Bhasgi, Senior Consultant, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Fortis Hospital, tells Health Shots. For those who cannot take hormones or prefer not to, this provides a new opportunity for relief.

(Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.)