Liver structure and function during long-term treatment with cyproterone acetate.

Animal experiments and clinical observations have raised the question of liver function in patients on long-term, high-dose administration of sex steroids. The effective treatment of androgenisation demands the prolonged administration of the antiandrogen cyproterone acetate (CPA), which is also a highly effective progestogen. Biochemical tests of liver function and ultrasonographic examinations were performed in 77 women who had been treated with CPA given in the reverse sequential scheme - 100 mg CPA/day from the 1st-10th day combined with 2 mg CPA + 0.05 mg ethinylestradiol/day from the 1st-21st day of each treatment cycle - for 3 to 11 years. No disturbances of the liver structure or function were found.