Ovarian Cancer - Is Hormone Therapy a culprit? Women taking hormone replacement therapy (HRT) have an increased risk of ovarian cancer. The Million Women Study, in Britain, proclaims that postmenopausal women on HRT show a 20 percent higher incidence of developing and dying from ovarian cancer than women who never take the hormones. When a woman stops hormone replacement therapy, the threat of ovarian cancer subsides to normal within a few years, but the symptoms of menopause may return. If caught early, ovarian cancer can be treated locally by removing the cancerous tumor or ovary. However, due to a lack of accurate screening tests, many ovarian cancers go unnoticed and spread throughout the body.