Hormone therapy may help women stay in work after menopause, research suggests

New research using data from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA) finds that early and surgical menopause are linked to different patterns of employment during midlife, and that hormone therapy in the years following menopause may help women remain in work.

Researchers from UCL and Loughborough University analysed the employment trajectories of more than 1,300 women over a ten-year period surrounding their final menstrual period or surgery. They found that women who experienced early menopause (before age 45) were less likely to work in flexible arrangements such as part-time or self-employment compared with women who experienced menopause later. However, they were no more likely to leave the labour market altogether.

By contrast, women who underwent surgical menopause (through premenopausal bilateral oophorectomy or hysterectomy) were at greater risk of leaving employment compared with those who experienced natural menopause, particularly when surgery occurred after age 45.

The findings suggest that hormone therapy may play a protective role in supporting women to remain in work following early or surgical menopause, although other factors such as health may also contribute.

Lead author Dr Darina Peycheva from the UCL Institute of Epidemiology and Health Care said:

“Our research shows that both early and surgical menopause can shape women’s working lives. Hormone therapy in the early postmenopausal years may help women remain in employment, but we also need to ensure workplaces recognise and accommodate the diversity of women’s menopause experiences.”

The study highlights the importance of considering the timing and type of menopause in employment and health policies. It calls for further research into how different menopause experiences influence labour market participation and for workplace practices that better support women through midlife transitions.

Peycheva, D., Wielgoszewska, B., Zaninotto, P., Steptoe, A. and Hardy, R. (2026) ‘The associations of early and surgical menopause with 10-year employment trajectories bracketing final menstruation or surgery’, Menopause, 33(2), pp. 000–000. doi: 10.1097/GME.0000000000002640. This article is published online ahead of print in Menopause (February 2026).

Image courtesy of the Centre for Ageing Better