Hormone Panel Tests for Menopause Often Promoted, but Unnecessary

The renewed interest and media attention on menopause and menopausal symptoms may help destigmatize this important topic and encourage women to seek care for their symptoms.[1] This attention, however, comes as a growing multibillion-dollar “femtech” market has publicized misleading information and promoted untested and unnecessary interventions.[2],[3]

A prominent example is hormone panel tests. These tests are advertised, without convincing evidence, to support a woman’s menopause transition[4] or to personalize treatment approaches.[5] The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not cleared hormone panel tests, which are often expensive, costing anywhere from $20 up to $500 per test panel set.[6]

As described in more detail below, hormone panel tests cannot predict the age when menopause will begin. The tests are unnecessary for assessing menopause, treating menopausal symptoms or guiding menopausal hormone therapy.[7]

Background

Menopause is a natural part of aging for women and often occurs around age 50 to 52 when menstrual cycles have ceased due to decreased estrogen levels.[8] The onset of menopause is typically determined in retrospect once a woman has had no menstrual cycle for 12 consecutive months.[9]

Perimenopause is the time leading up to menopause; this time can last only a few months for some women and up to several years for others. Perimenopause is characterized by irregular menstrual cycles, fluctuating hormone levels (mainly of estradiol and follicle-stimulating hormone) and the onset of menopausal symptoms.[10] These symptoms include hot flashes, vaginal dryness, painful intercourse, night sweats and recurrent urinary tract infections that often continue after menopause.

The severity and types of symptoms can differ substantially between women.[11] Some women may only experience mild symptoms that may not require treatment; other women have symptoms severe enough to affect their quality of life. Moderate to severe menopausal symptoms should be addressed through lifestyle interventions or, if necessary, pharmaceutical interventions.

If you are considering medication, discuss with your clinician whether menopausal hormone therapy — mainly estrogen only (such as conjugated estrogens [PREMARIN and generics[12]]) and combined estrogen and progestin (such as conjugated estrogens and medroxyprogesterone [PREMPHASE, PREMPRO[13]]) — is an option for you.

Although these treatments are effective at preventing hot flashes and treating vaginal or vulvar atrophy, they are associated with serious adverse effects, such as an increased risk of endometrial and breast cancer, blood clots, and stroke, and are therefore not recommended for long-term use. Hormone therapy for menopause symptoms should be taken at the lowest dose and for the shortest duration that provides symptom relief.[14]

In 2023 the FDA approved the nonhormonal drug fezolinetant (VEOZAH)[15] for the treatment of moderate to severe vasomotor symptoms due to menopause. Based on safety concerns and limited benefits, Public Citizen’s Health Research Group has designated fezolinetant as a Do Not Use drug.

Another nonhormonal drug for moderate to severe vasomotor symptoms — elinzanetant (LYNKUET[16]), approved by the FDA in October 2025 — will be reviewed in a forthcoming issue of Worst Pills, Best Pills News.

Hormone panel tests

Hormone panel tests are promoted for both perimenopause and menopause and are available online and in pharmacies.[17] The tests are also offered by health and wellness clinics, including chiropractors and health coaches, who may have a financial interest in marketing these tests.[18]

Hormone panel tests can be blood, urine or saliva based. The tests assess the levels of sex hormones, including those involved in ovulation and regulating menstrual cycles.[19] Most commonly the panel tests measure the levels of estradiol, which becomes undetectable after menopause, and follicle-stimulating hormone, which has high concentrations after menopause.[20] Some tests also measure the levels of other hormones such as progesterone, prolactin, testosterone or luteinizing hormone.

Because hormone levels can fluctuate daily during perimenopause, hormone panel tests do not offer meaningful results.[21] Certain health conditions (such as thyroid disease) or medications (such as hormonal contraception or certain breast cancer treatments) can affect hormone levels and alter the test results.

Although some websites that offer these tests acknowledge that they are neither reliable nor necessary for assessing menopause, these tests may be advertised as useful for women seeking to better understand their symptoms or promoted for regular use to keep track of hormone levels.

In 2022 several British medical societies, including the British Menopause Society, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and the Society for Endocrinology, published menopause practice standards.[22] These medical societies recommend that in women aged 45 or older, perimenopause or menopause should be diagnosed based only on symptoms. Assessment of hormone levels is not needed unless other causes of symptoms need to be ruled out, according to these practice standards. Similarly, a 2025 editorial in the BMJ found no convincing evidence that hormone panel tests are useful before starting menopausal hormone therapy.[23]

Because medical education focused on menopause has been limited, many clinicians may not have the training needed to help women manage their menopause symptoms.[24] When women feel that their clinicians are not supporting them, some may try to find other sources of information and discover heavily advertised products such as hormone panel tests.[25]

Relying on results from a hormone panel test, especially without guidance from a clinician, may lead women to start unnecessary and unproven nondrug treatments, such as supplements or nutraceuticals (food components purported to have health benefits).

Moreover, if the tests show seemingly normal hormone levels, women may be discouraged from seeking help when menopausal hormone therapy or other medical treatment might be beneficial. Examples are persistent symptoms that interfere with other activities and other conditions whose symptoms may be similar, such as thyroid disease. Women experiencing symptoms should ask their clinician to consider and rule out other potential causes.[26]

What You Can Do

Although hormone panel tests are often advertised as a way to help women understand menopausal symptoms, these tests are not necessary to assess menopause or to treat menopausal symptoms. If you experience symptoms typical of menopause, speak to your clinician about how to best address them. Clinicians who have training in treating menopausal symptoms can be found on the website of The Menopause Society (https://portal.menopause.org/NAMS/NAMS/Directory/Menopause-Practitioner.aspx).

Do not decide on over-the-counter medications, supplements or other interventions based on hormone panel test results. Consult with your clinician first.
 

References

[1] Christakis MK, Roebotham T, Sterry S, et al. Menopause misinformation is harming care. BMJ. 2025 Aug 20;390:r1695.

[2] Gunter J. Addressing the challenges of online misinformation and unregulated products in the clinical management of menopause. Obstet Gynecol. 2025 Jun 26;146(2):189-194.

[3] Yuksel N, Treseng L, Malik B, et al. Promotion and marketing of bioidentical hormone therapy on the internet: a content analysis of websites. Menopause. 2017 Oct;24(10):1129-1135.

[4] Labcorp OnDemand. Menopause test. https://www.ondemand.labcorp.com/lab-tests/menopause-test. Accessed December 1, 2025.

[5] Dutch. Supporting menopause with the DUTCH test. May 6, 2025. https://dutchtest.com/articles/supporting-menopause-with-the-dutch-test. Accessed December 1, 2025.

[6] University of Missouri Health Care. Thinking about getting your hormone levels tested? 7 things to know. August 23, 2025. https://livehealthy.muhealth.org/stories/thinking-about-getting-your-hormone-levels-tested-7-things-know. Accessed December 1, 2025.

[7] Gunter J. Addressing the challenges of online misinformation and unregulated products in the clinical management of menopause. Obstet Gynecol. 2025 Jun 26;146(2):189-194.

[8] USPSTF reaffirms recommendations against using menopausal hormone therapy to prevent chronic conditions. Worst Pills, Best Pills News. April 2023. https://www.worstpills.org/newsletters/view/1526. Accessed December 1, 2025.

[9] Cleveland Clinic. Perimenopause. August 8, 2024. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/21608-perimenopause. Accessed December 1, 2025.

[10] Christakis MK, Roebotham T, Sterry S, et al. Menopause misinformation is harming care. BMJ. 2025 Aug 20;390:r1695.

[11] Thurston RC, Huang AJ. The swinging pendulum of menopausal hormone therapy. JAMA Intern Med. 2025 Oct 27.

[12] Pfizer, Inc. Label: Conjugated estrogens (PREMARIN). April 2025. https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2025/004782s179lbl.pdf. Accessed November 6, 2025.

[13] Pfizer, Inc. Label: conjugated estrogens plus medroxyprogesterone acetate (PREMPHASE). April 2025. https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2025/020527s067lbl.pdf. Accessed December 9, 2025.

[14] Do not use fexolinetant (VEOZAH) for the treatment of hot flashes (vasomotor symptoms). Worst Pills, Best Pills News. May 2024. https://www.worstpills.org/newsletters/view/1595. Accessed December 9, 2025.

[15] Astellas Pharma US. Label: fezolinetant (VEOZAH). December 2024. https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2024/216578s004lbl.pdf. Accessed December 9, 2024.

[16] Bayer. Label: elinzanetant (LYNKUET). October 2025. https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2025/219469s000lbl.pdf. Accessed December 9, 2025.

[17] Gunter J. Addressing the challenges of online misinformation and unregulated products in the clinical management of menopause. Obstet Gynecol. 2025 Jun 26;146(2):189-194.

[18] Christakis MK, Roebotham T, Sterry S, et al. Menopause misinformation is harming care. BMJ. 2025 Aug 20;390:r1695.

[19] Ibid.

[20] Endocrine Society. Understanding the diagnosis. https://www.endocrine.org/menopausemap/understanding-the-diagnosis/index.html. Accessed December 1, 2025.

[21] Cleveland Clinic. Perimenopause. August 8, 2024. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/21608-perimenopause. Accessed December 1, 2025.

[22] Hamoda H, Moger S, Morris E, et al. Menopause practice standards. Post Reprod Health. 2022 Sep;28(3):127-132.

[23] Christakis MK, Roebotham T, Sterry S, et al. Menopause misinformation is harming care. BMJ. 2025 Aug 20;390:r1695.

[24] Kling JM, MacLaughlin KL, Schnatz PF, et al. Menopause management knowledge in postgraduate family medicine, internal medicine, and obstetrics and gynecology residents: A cross-sectional survey. Mayo Clin Proc. 2019 Feb;94(2):242-253.

[25] Gunter J. Addressing the challenges of online misinformation and unregulated products in the clinical management of menopause. Obstet Gynecol. 2025 Jun 26;146(2):189-194.

[26] Cleveland Clinic. Perimenopause. August 8, 2024. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/21608-perimenopause. Accessed December 1, 2025.