Women urged to discuss options with their doctor.

Byline: Lisa Liddane

Patti Wride, 47, didn't give much thought to her six-year-long daily regimen of Prempro _ progestin and estrogen.

Until last week.

Wride, like probably millions of other women who have entered menopause, stopped to reconsider Prempro after findings from a Women's Health Initiative study showed that the hormone-replacement therapy increased a woman's risk of breast cancer, strokes and heart attacks. The results appear in Monday's Journal of the American Medical Association but were released to the public last week.

The two most important questions on her mind: What do I do now? What are my other options?

Wride, who took Prempro because previous studies touted its protective benefits for the heart, said worry was not her first reaction when she heard about the study on TV. "My ears perked up, and I wanted to know more," said the nurse from Huntington Beach, Calif. She read more about it in a newspaper, chatted about it with a friend who also is taking HRT, and asked doctors about the study results.

She is weighing whether to stop taking Prempro or switch to a different hormonal regimen.

Other women say the risks are worth the relief from hot flashes, vaginal dryness and sleeplessness.

Some say they're relieved they had either already stopped or never started taking it.

The first step is not to panic or do something rash like immediately going off the medication, said obstetrician-gynecologist Dr. Anh Ngo, assistant clinical professor of medicine at University of California, Irvine. Ngo is among countless doctors who fielded calls from worried patients who were taking hormone- replacement therapy last week.

Get as much information as you can about the study,…