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What causes the menopause?

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A natural menopause occurs because as you get older, your ovaries
stop producing eggs and make less oestrogen (the main female hormone).
The average age of the menopause in the UK is 52. Your menopause is
said to be early (sometimes called premature) if it occurs before the
age of 45. Early menopause is uncommon.

There are certain things that may cause an early menopause. For example:

If you have surgery to remove your ovaries for some reason, you are likely to develop menopause symptoms straight away.
If you have radiotherapy to your pelvis area as a treatment for cancer.
Some chemotherapy drugs that treat cancer may lead to an early menopause.
If you have had a hysterectomy (removal of the uterus) before your
menopause. Your ovaries will still make oestrogen. However, it is
likely that the level of oestrogen will fall at an earlier age than
average. As you do not have periods after a hysterectomy, it may not be
clear when you are in 'the menopause'. However, you may develop some
typical symptoms (see below) when your level of oestrogen falls.
An early menopause can run in some families.
In some women who have an early menopause, no cause can be found.

Early (or premature) menopause is not discussed in detail in this leaflet.

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