All Topics → Forum: Hormonal Therapy - Before, During and After → Topic: Vagifem
Posted on: Nov 25, 2008 08:07 AM
Nanda wrote:
I developed a pretty bad urinary tract infection and my oncologist prescribed Vagifem. I was very hesitant because I'm also taking Arimidex. She said the amount of estrogen that gets into the bloodstream from Vagifem is negligible and does not contradict the effects of the Arimedex. I don't want any more infections, but I'm leery of taking anything that provides any estrogen at all after having gone through bc.
Has anyone had a similar experience? Would sure appreciate thoughts/opinions on this. Thanks.
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Dec 1, 2011 09:10 PM kmf wrote:
My onco won't recommend Vagifem as I was Estrogen positive-- so I too am looking for non-hormonal remedies. I'm curious about the "supositories" you make -- what is in them?
Jun 26, 2012 08:42 PM Cyborg wrote:
Breaking down. Afraid, but the UCLA oncologist said OK to vagifem and suggested it. Scared but desperate .
Nov 1, 2012 12:09 PM, edited Nov 1, 2012 12:31 PM by Chris11
Nov 3, 2012 03:09 PM Mountain_Gem wrote:
I was taking Vagifem (VF) very sparingly (Only when I got infections or terrible burning, etc) before I was diagnosed with BC. I just started Arimidex a couple of mos ago & man did the atrophy get horrendous in less than a month. It got so bad that I ended up with an almost untreatable UTI, yeast infection & when I got out a mirror it looked like several layers of skin were peeling off at once.
I started with a male oncologist because I was under the misinformation that both my local oncologists were male. I liked him fine, but when I told him about this he said absolutely no way would he give me estrogen in any form. But he also, sort of absently, mentioned not wanting to get sued. Wow! I was really glad to find out that the other doc was a female. I switched over right away. She doesn't want to give me Vagifem, but prescribed Estrace cream. I used it for about 4 days & I was getting worse & burning like crazy. I'm very sensitive to preservatives & I'm sure that's what it was. I still had a very small amount of VF left & have used it for the last 3 days. I emailed my doc to tell her what I did & to ask for her okay. I'll have to see if even this works. This is the worse atrophy I've ever had & it's been pretty bad in the past...
Nov 4, 2012 03:08 AM ck55 wrote:
For those of you using Vagifem, how much are you using and how long until things got back to"normaI just started about a month and 1/2 ago inserting a tablet 3 times a week. I also switched to tamoxifen after 5 years of Femara with the thought that the tamoxifen would block any possible increase in systemic estrogen.
My issue is that while it does seem to have helped with internal lubrication, the pain I experience externally during insertion seems to be more painful. To the point that it is uncomfortable to sit the next day. Anybody else experience this or have any thoughts on why this may be happening? Do I just need to give it more time to work it's magic?
Any thoughts would be appreciated.
Thanks, Cyndi
Nov 4, 2012 04:21 AM chrissyb wrote:
Hi Cyndi I use vagifem but no more than twice a week as per instructions and find that is enough to alleviate the discomfort. If you are having problems with the insertion that is causing pain perhaps you could use a mirror to actually see that you are opening the lips properly with the other hand so you are not scraping the delicate skin.
Love n hugs. Chrissy
Nov 11, 2012 04:22 AM Cyborg wrote:
I put a little bit of lubrication around the opening.
Nov 19, 2012 11:01 PM ghsnead wrote:
I too have vaginal dryness issues due to femara. I am estrogen + so I avoid any estrogen. If I choose an estrogen to treat the poor dessicated vagina, I think I would pick a non systemic one like e string.I would use in the lowest possible dose too. I believe e string is a vaginal ring that fits into the vagina working ONLY on the tissues there. A good thing!!! However I know for sure that the Femring mentioned in an earlier post is made for Systemic Hormone replacement. The hormone travels outside the vagina to ALL tissues of the body. It treats more than just for the vaginal atrophy that many of us have. I used Femring before cancer, had hormone levels of estradiol that were between 50 and 150. I often wonder if the Femring estrogen fed my tumors...pretty sure that it did .Now I use several things vaginally to treat the dry tissues. I buy Trader Joe's vitamin E oil and use a vaginal applicator to put in a teaspooon or so just before bed. I think this helps alot. I also use a product called Me Again. It is a vaginal moisturizer that includes vitamin e, lecithin, glycolhyaluronic acid...it really helps. I also find that plain old ky jelly a water based lubricant used a couple of times a week helps too.
SO between these three things I am still sexually active with little discomfort. If I don't use anything I
get dry and sore. I also use a silicone based vaginal lubricant that has no additives, this has been a great help too.