Dr. Corinne Menn: The Truth About Hormone Replacement for BRCA Carriers and Previvers

Written By Sara Champie
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Guest: Dr. Corinne Menn
Theme: Claiming agency in hereditary cancer risk, surgical menopause, and a new era of HRT care

Episode summary
When Dr. Corinne Menn—board certified OB/GYN, Menopause Society certified practitioner, 23+ year breast cancer survivor, and BRCA2 carrier—joins us, she brings unparalleled lived and clinical expertise to walking the genetic line. In this conversation, Dr. Corinne Menn shares her deeply personal journey: breast cancer at 28, the loss of her mother to ovarian cancer, and the years navigating her own genetic risk and premature menopause. Together, we explore why BRCA (and other mutation) “previvors” often land in a black hole of care, how miscommunication and provider fear still undermine evidence-based treatment, and the hopeful shift as new guidelines and cultural change begin to reshape what’s possible for those living at hereditary risk.

We cover

  • Dr. Corinne Menn

    ’s origin story: the collision of residency, a breast cancer diagnosis in her 20s, and her mother’s ovarian cancer and loss

  • How outdated genetic testing, medical gaslighting, and trauma shaped her assertiveness as both patient and physician

  • The “CEO of your health” mindset: building self-trust and voice inside overwhelming medical realities

  • The giant gap in menopause and HRT education across the entire medical field (~20 years of misinformation and fear after the WHI study)

  • What most doctors STILL get wrong about HRT for BRCA carriers—and how new FDA changes and Menopause Society guidelines support safer, more nuanced use

  • Proactive care: why pre-surgery counseling and immediate access to HRT matter for quality of life, bone, heart, and brain health

  • “Female castration”—naming the reality and impact of surgical menopause and how it’s minimized systemically

  • How trauma-informed therapy and a more holistic approach are essential for hereditary cancer communities and all patients in medical systems

Highlights & takeaways

  • “All BRCA previvors must demand pre-op counseling and a pre-op management plan on how their doctor is going to manage their abrupt surgical menopause. This is not optional.”

  • The harm of not providing HRT after surgical menopause is severe: double the risk of heart disease, dementia, osteoporosis, mood disorders—especially for those under 45.

  • New FDA changes (Spring 2024): the black box warning on estrogen is being removed/updated, allowing for clearer, less fear-based counseling about HRT’s risks and benefits.

  • For BRCA (and other mutation) carriers, HRT up to natural menopause is standard of care. The fear of HRT, especially after risk-reducing surgeries, is both outdated and damaging.

  • Genitourinary syndrome of menopause deserves more attention and treatment—local vaginal estrogen is safe, effective, and newly destigmatized.

  • “If you wouldn't tell a man at 31 who lost his testicles to just try coconut oil—don't do that to female patients after oophorectomy.”

Content note
Includes discussion of parental death, breast/ovarian cancer, early menopause, medical trauma, sexual health, and systemic gaps in care.

Resources mentioned & organizations

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You’re not alone—we can walk this line together.

Sara Champie
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Beth Martinetti: Family, Fertility, and Identity after Hereditary Cancer Diagnosis
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Martha Kaiser: From Melanoma Diagnosis to Genetic Discovery – A Journey of Agency and Ancestry