Bottle o Tamoxifen
Comments
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Just a quick post for the newbies--for those worried or experiencing a weight gain on tamox, try drinking a cup or two of green tea daily. It has excellent cancer fighting properties and also is known to help keep weight down. Get the good kind if you can--loose tea is generally better. Make sure it is green and not brownish-looking. I was pre-meno at dx, didn't have chemo and have had no SEs except an ovarian cyst which we are just watching. Going in for another pelvic ultrasound today so we'll see how the little guy is doing. I haven't felt it much at all in the past few months so maybe it's gone...
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Hi, all. For those who can't sleep, my onc said my occasional Ambien is fine and does not interact with the tamox. It is a prescription, but if you tell your doctor you are having trouble sleeping, there is usually no problem getting a prescription.
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kap- I wonder why you think you'd get negativity here? We have two recent posters who seem to be very negative, but I have them on ignore so I don't see their posts. I know you are newish with only 27 posts so maybe you got that impression from just the recent pages, but I've been following the women on this thread since May, and I read back a lot, and what you suggest is pretty much SOP here
And so is playing "Guess the Cause"! Is (fill in blank) from chemo pause, PSTD from DX, from aging, from other medical issues, from change in habit, from Tamox... Tamox CAN cause weight gain, and you could be one of the few people who get that nasty side effect. So can all the other factors.
Taking a Tamoxication can relieve side effects, we've seen that time and again. But- a couple buts... you should clear it with your ONC first. Rose didn't, so she's naughty, and she gave her ONC a jolt when she told them, but it worked out for her. Another but, you have been on Tamox for a long time already, I don't know that anyone had any change after taking Tamox for 2 years first.
I don't know your age, but there is a lot of information about weight gain as we age, and from menopause, which I think you said you are in thanks to chemo. Its an uphill batter even for non-cancer patients. We have to increase our exercise and reduce our calories, metabolism slows down. So 4 days a week of working out... might... not... be... enough. Fun fun fun eh?
I want you to have success in weight loss, and although my amateur opinion plus 25 cents will get you a dial tone in most cities, I'm venturing to say that a 2 week tamoxication probably wont do you any harm, but it probably wont do you any good either. If you want to lose weight, your safest bet is to do what everyone, even non-cancer patients has to do... you know... eat less, work out more, cut out salt and sugar, all that jazz.
I sure wish it was easier too!
Let us know how it goes
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Morning Bonnie
I have another headache this morning, or, I guess the same one. lol I hope it isn't the tamox and still just a lingering effect of my nightmare with the CAT scan on Monday. Guess I will take some advil and see if that works. Hope you have a great day Bonnie!
Susie
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Kap,
There isn't negativity here. I think it was starting, but, the wonderful ladies here stopped it. We are all in this together and we need to support each other. I was terrified to start tamox, but, because of these great ladies here, I am on it now and only having headaches so far. Stopping your tamox for a while is truly your own decision and noone will get on you for it. You will be amongst nonjudgemental survivors. You just do what you have to do for you. This site is for all of us, and, we have the right to express opinions, fears, tell celebrations and accomplishments with ease and not fear repercussions. So, you keep posting and let us know how you are doing. OK? We are here to help you, whether you are on tamox now, stopping for awhile, or just not for sure.
I have always been one of those that are terrified of gaining weight. I lost my Mother young, and, I just wanted to be so perfect for my Aunt, so, I have been borderline anorexic most of my life after my Mom died. It is not good to be this way, but, I am much better now. Let us know how you do with your weight. Good luck!
Susie
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Good luck today MTG! Let us know what you find out!
Susie0 -
Thanks for all the posts and sorry if I came off harsh. It was not intended. I will let you know how things go.
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Kap, you didn't come off harsh. Maybe, just a little bit fearful. lol But, noone is going to be upset with something that you feel that you have to do. Like I said, I was welcomed with open arms here and so are you. You can see that most of the survivors here are great and will always support you in anything that you do. And, if they don't, they don't belong on a bc survivors site, no matter what. Unfortunately, we all are fighting "the beast" and because of this, we need to be strong and supportive always to each other. Keep us posted on how you do!
Susie
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Oh no, kap you didn't come off harsh, I just hope you can feel confident when you post here that people wont be jumping on your case. You don't have to apologize!
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OMG, does anyone else have these crazy beetles/ladybugs in their house? We live in the country and they are in the house now! YUCK! I guess they were brought over from overseas by the farmers to do something with the soybeans. And, they are horrible! Someone said they will die when we get a freeze. So, bring it on! lol
Ok, sorry, a non-cancer comment, but, wondered if anyone else had them.
Susie
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Susie, yes, relentless nasty things that will bite too. Thought we'd get by without them this year, then one nice day last week looked out and you could see them swarming
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Susie, my headaches started about 2 weeks out and I still have them, some days worse than others but manageable. As for the lady bugs...I love the little guys and can't bring myself to kill them. We have them in the house as well and they are all stuck to the front door - I guess they can feel the heat from inside.
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If anyone is interested in changing/improving their diet and using diet to help with cancer prevention, I love a book called Anti-Cancer: A New Way of Life by Dr David Servan-Schrieber. He's a cancer survivor also and his book includes great info on better diet and what food work better for different kinds of cancers--has anecdotes from his patients and his own experiences and also explains the body-mind connection and why that is an important component--as well as exercise. I really liked it b/c it explains WHY some foods are better than others. My DH and I have both changed out diets. We didn't need to lose a lot of weight but lost a little and feel better. I really believe a change in diet is so important for everyone and living longer in better health.
OK--getting off my soap box!
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Hi to All,
I thought these beetles resembled lady bugs but weren't the same ones we get in the
summer. They look a little different to me. I don't like them in the house. Oh Well
)Susie ~~ looks like one of your main side effects might be headaches. I had flushes at first
and they left .... but do come back now and then. Let's hope your headaches take a hike
here soon too.
Saw my oncologist a week ago and surgeon today and both gave me a 6 month pass so
I'm a happy camper not having to go back until April and May.
CatbirdC Bonnie
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Hi Allie,
I have this book as well - it is great. The only problem is there are so many phytoestrogens recommended (tumeric, garlic, soy...) all real no-nos for those of us who do not metabolize Tamox properly as they inhibit it.
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Kmmd: These ladybugs/beetles are weird. And, they smell too. lol I hope they go soon.
my560sel: I have been sweeping the bugs up now and they still stink. I did squeeze a couple and they "pooped" orange on me. ewwwwwwwwwwwww lol
I hope my headaches go away too.
Bonnie: Hi! I am still hoping that my headache is just because of my horrible CAT scan experience, but, it could be tamox. If it is, I will try to deal with it. What do you take for your headaches?
And, these ladybugs/beetles are different than the ones in the summer. These only come out when the soybeans are ready for harvest in the fall. Dang them anyway!
Ok, need to vacuum some more up. VAROOMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!
Susie
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Allie,
Thanks for the advice on the book. I will certainly look into getting it.
Susie
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Chelev, you got a prescription for ambien to help you sleep?
Is anyone on anything else to help them sleep?
Susie
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We have had minor invasions of them in past years. The ladybug ones like my daughter's room, I think because it is the west facing side of the house and they like the warmth. They get caught and escorted outside.
We haven't seen nearly as many this year... I think it is because the one year old dog likes to catch, play with and eat bugs.
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PatMom: Can we borrow your dog? lol
They do love the windows where the sun is coming in. Ok, I am praying for cloudy days now. lol
Susie
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Well.......back from the Breast Surgeon. He says Tamoxifen is really the way to go. And that since I'm quite healthy and pre-menopausal, the scarier symptoms of gynecological, liver and eye issues are very unlikely. I'm not thrilled but I trust him. And I'll make certain to monitor all more closely than before. All in all, the visit went well and I'm lots more comfortable about the next step. Of course, although I eat super healthy (primarily vegetarian with some fish and dairy; hardly any meat or chicken), I was chastised for having too many cocktails each week. ~sigh~ I really like martinis and cosmos, not to mention the 3 bottles of champagne (with others, not just me) in as many days to celebrate the end of rads.
Next step is looking into the different manufacturers. You ladies have already helped a bit and I found a list of the inactive ingredients that each manufacuter uses on http://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/search.cfm?startswith=tamoxifen&x=0&y=0 so I'll check into the fillers and see if any have more SE than others.
Looking into prices as well. I know Walmart is ultra cheap but there are none nearby and besides they're always crazy crowded Any other suggestions of pharmacies that have great prices - In NYC, North Jersey or the Internet? Even DC since I'm frequently down there ?
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There you go, MTG. Welcome officially to the club!
FYI, my 20mg pill is from AstraZeneca; my 10mg only says Tamofen.
You should live in Calgary. My drugs are free from the Tom Baker Cancer Centre.
GOOD LUCK!
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Rose...
I've been staying away also... it's been two years since I started Tamoxifen. I have been trying not to think about bc 24/7, but it still creeps in. I had been hanging out on Facebook for awhile, but since alot of my bc friends have found me, I am having more 'moments' when I think about bc so it's on my mind alot lately...
I guess I just want to let you all know that Rose is right... there will be a time when you don't have se's all the time, and you can feel pretty normal...
I may be switching to an AI soon... I'm doing the Tamoxifen countdown...
57 Tamoxifen pills to go...
Hugs
Harley
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MTG: I am glad that your doctor's visit went so well. So, do you feel better now about taking tamox? So far, I only have had a headache with it. ( crossing fingers and everything else ).
And, I think WalMart is the cheapest. But, always check around.
Good luck!
Susie
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WOW Harley, you are almost done with tamox! We will have to have a big celebration for you! I look forward to that day. Let's see..it is only 4 years and 362 days away. lol
I hope that one day we all can forget about bc and just put it in the back of our minds. But, it just takes time. Most of us are still in treatment and it just won't happen yet, or, I don't think so for me anyway.
Susie
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Caroline - Thanks for the official welcome ! You're right about the cost of drugs in Canada !! Both my parents are in their 80s and because of them I'm well aware of the huge price differential between here and there. Of course, the differential within the US is enormous as well. So far I've found a high of $187.99/90 pills at the Walgreens near me on the Upper East Side and a low of sometlhing like $4 /30 at Walmart. My word, that's insane !!!!
By the way, if you're interested, Tamofen is manufactured by Aventis http://www.sanofi-aventis.ca/products/en/tamofen.pdf
Harley & Rose - Congratulations to you both. It's a great reminder for us "newbies" that time marches on and, with a little perseverence (or maybe a lot) we'll get to the other side of this mountain.
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Greetings all! Allie, I agree with you about the Anti-Cancer book. I enjoyed reading it and learning about some ways I had not yet considered that might help me to reduce risk and to improve my well-being overall. Rose, thanks for the update; it was thoughtful and helpful. Rachel, I was so tired when I last read and posted that I may not remember this correctly, but didn't you post about a study that compared efficacy of Tamox (excluding the low metabolizers) with the AI's that found no significant difference? I find that very interesting, and when I have more time (and perhaps more energy) I will look into that more. I had quite a bad experience with Arimidex--won't go into that whole story again--and I am very hopeful about the possible benefits of Tamox.
MTG, I posted a while back about my response to alcohol since being on Tamox. I am not a big drinker but I l-o-v-e a good chocolate martini (just a more relaxed way to enjoy more chocolate...), and I am just about blasted when I drink just one now. I maintain a good activity/exercise level again (kind of slumped and slid off the wagon during the TC chemo ride), eat well, try to do what I can to nurture my body, so I am not going to feel guilty about an occasional cocktail. Heck, .5mg Ativan knocks me more for a loop than alcohol! And it seems that I sleep best with .25mg Ativan, which I still use on occasion when I feel edgy and just can't rest. I cannot tolerate Ambien. Susie, with regard to headaches, I had some splitting headaches after 1month+ on Tamox--very irregular for me--and they went away after a couple of weeks. I also found that I had a powerful headache each time I took my old stand-by antihistamine (new for me), which I used when my sinuses "acted up." By the way, I have found that a number of side effects--especially the yucky vaginal "secretions"--have stopped or reduced in intensity along the way (about 3 months since beginning Tamox). My eyes are less dry, but I still use Similisan to help. kmmd, do I remember correctly about your eye problems? Have they resolved? Fatigue continues to be my number one problem, but as many of you know I am still recovering (slowly) from chemo, so that may dissipate over time. I remain hopeful. Fortunately I have not had the extreme bitchiness that some have experienced, which slightly worried me when I started, since I was quite irritable and testy with Arimidex. Of course, I am not totally filled with goodness and light, in spite of those expectations of others that I am supposed to be a grateful, saint-like creature now that I have survived breast ca three times!
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brenda- that was meg (ivorymom) I can't remember if she posted the study?
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Hi !!!!
It turned cold here and those daggone beetles seem to have gone once again. I only have a
few ..... 3 or 4 ....... still in here. Gosh Susie ~~ sounds like they LOVE it at your
house. You definitely must get a bug eating dog of your very own.
) I "thought" I readsomewhere not to sweep them up but it's vague in my brain. LOL
About the headaches... either is possible... your allergic reaction or the Big T. Since they are
continuing though it does make me wonder.
Take Care All
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Hello ladies,
I am new to this thread. I started taking Tamox 5 days ago. I have really bad nausea, fatigue, insomnia, and yes, bitchiness. Do these SEs diminish in time? I take the pill (20mg) at night since I heard that helps, but I have nausea and stomach discomfort all day.
Any suggestions, recommendations or advice would be appreciated.
Mary
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