Bottle o Tamoxifen
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Melody46, it looks like Nogales is the closest border town to Tuscon AND I WOULD DEFINITELY NOT, NOT, NOT RECOMMEND YOU GO THERE!!!! It's one of the "hot spots" for cartel activity. If you can get to Yuma, the border crossing there takes you to Algodones. That is a very safe alternative and many Americans even use the walk in border gate so as not to need any mex car insurance.
Lezza, hi.....yes, although I've gotten good exams for glasses in MX, I think I'll feel more comfortable having a complete eye exam here in CA
I just got home from my endo biopsy of the pancreas. Like momof3infla I won't get the results for 7+ days, but the DR said he didn't see anything that caused too much concern. He also biopsies my stomach due to a mild case of gastritis (no symptoms). Positive thoughts as I leave on the 7th for 10 days in Cancún and Cozumel.0 -
Chachamom, I go to Progresso - Texas border town. We can walk with no problem. I checked with not only my insurance but with a company that sells Mexican insurance and unless you go past the 15 mile checkpoint, you really don't need the additional Mexican insurance. I don't personally drive over but many of our Winter Texans (snowbirds in AZ & Fl) and I have not heard of any incidents or problems. The locals across the border know how much the winter residents spend in their country and they take extra care to watch the cars and make sure there are no accidents. It maybe completely different in AZ and your closest border crossing which is Tijuana.
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Jo- maybe Texas would be a better option for Melody46 if that's closer than AZ. Now that you mention it, you are right that you don't need mx auto ins just to go to the border towns. As for the crossing closest to me, we use Mexicali/El Centro. I'm not too fond of Tijuana, and where we go to San Felipe we're on the Sea of Cortz side of the Baja peninsula. I feel very safe in Mexicali and Algadones......but would not travel alone in Tijuana or especially Nogales!
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Thanks for all the info, I need so much dental work and theres no way I can afford it here in WA. I have family in Tucson so I'll check around and see what they say and see if any of their friends have recommendations.
I went to see MO yesterday and he once again was saying 10 yrs on blockers was the way to go. I'm going to wait and see how it affects me before I make that decision. Its only been a couple months.
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Chachamom - I have been to Mexicali/El Centro and it is the better choice over TJ. The worst TX border crossing is at El Paso. Juarez is so very dangerous. Armed Forces personnel are strictly prohibited from crossing the border. Heck, I wouldn't go even if someone paid me.
Melody - I am hearing that many MOs are going with the 10 years on Tamoxifen. My MO told me 5 years. I am post menopausal and can't take the AIs. Plus, I don't think there is enough hard evident at this time to really justify the longer time.
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Well, went to my PCP who I just absolutely love and she sent my for a pelvic ultrasound and a transvaginal ultrasound, first one sine being on tamoxifen....now I have to go see the gyn tomorrow for him to decide on a endometrial biopsy. PCP said every thing looked really good with everything else, except my uterus is very thick. Gotta love that little white pill.
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mstrouble - I so know what you are taking about. I had the same problems for 2 years and this year had to have a hysterectomy because of that little white pill.
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Is it common to have the thickening of the uterus?
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Hi Guys,
Sounds like many of us have the thickening of the uterus. I sure do & see the GYN for the biopsu, next week. But he told me he thins it is ok.
MStrouble did you have to have a biopsy?
Sharon
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What does thickening do, or cause????
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Well went to the GYN today and had to have a endometrial biopsy....btw NOT FUN. He thinks all is ok that this is very common with ladies onTamoxifen but still has to do the biopsy. Had to laugh the dr tells me "your going feel slight cramping" the nurse said slight my butt sweetie, it's going to be major cramping. Needless to say she was right.
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Thickening of the uterus is very common while on Tamoxifen. I have been on Tamoxifen for 2 1/2 years. So far have had to have 2 biopies, 2 D&Cs, a 3 cm polyp removed and most recent a hysterectomy due to uterus thickening AGAIN for the 3rd time and some post menopausal bleeding. Also, had a endometrial biopsy before the hystie and I will agree with mstrouble - slight cramping my butt. Obviously the nurses who say that have not had one themselves. Hum! Maybe they should just so that know and will stop saying that. I have 2 1/2 years left and I really hate this little white pill. What a pain in the butt it has been for me.
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Wow...you all have been through so much!
For those of you especially with Stage 1 a /low risk groups, do you think all of that ..the endometrial issues caused by Tami, SE's & Serious SE risks...the D&C's, etc. is worth it? Do you wonder sometimes if it might be MORE damaging/stressful than the Possible/maybe protection of taking hormone therapy?
So sorry to hear that many of you really are put through a lot on top of the BC diagnosis...:(
Some day...there's GOT to be a better option...Hate Cancer!0 -
Violet, I can only answer for myself, but it seems to me that the worst SEs are pretty remote risks whereas cancer recurrence is a higher risk. Tami is also a treatment for metastatic cancer which makes me feel better when I have dark fears that there are bad cells elsewhere in my body. Having had a lumpectomy instead of mastectomy, and refusing chemo (oncotype score 13, but my first MO was pushing it), I am not into the most aggressive treatments--but I am committed to giving Tami a very good try. It has a really good track record, probably even better than it looks since there's believed to be quite a bit of unreported noncompliance. I am grateful to have only minor side effects so far and grateful to have the med. Jo, you are going back on it even though it caused you to need a hysterectomy and other procedures, no? That too is a strong recommendation. I do know people who have refused Tami and others who have gone off it. I think it's one of those situations where you have to balance the risks on each side, and it appears to me that the risks are higher without Tami than with it, on average.
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So, after weeks of back pain on my lower left side I finally went to the doctor. I had an xray yesterday that I'm waiting to hear back about, and the doctor said regardless of how the xray looks he wants me to get a bone scan. Has anyone had one before? There's a part of me that wonders if it's the tamoxifen that's making it hurt since the pain started a month after starting it, and then there's the paranoid part of me that thinks the cancer has spread to my bones. I'm almost hoping it's the tamoxifen, but then not so much because I'm supposed to be on this crap for 10 years and I can't stand this pain for that long!
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RunFree16 - Against my better judgement, I did go back on Tamoxifen after being off of it for 5 weeks. I do miss feeling so good while on the break. When I told my MO about the vaginal bleeding he told me to stop taking Tamox until after my hysterectomy. Unfortunately, my GYN was not able to remove my ovaries - they are fused to my bladder so that is still a concern for me. At least I know I will only be doing 5 years.
BethCon1 - I have had a bone scan and the worst part for me was the IV as I have a huge fear of them. I had a very bad experience many years ago and just can't seem to get past it. Otherwise, the scan itself is not bad at all. I had to do part of it in the morning, then had to waste 4 hours doing something - I went shopping and then had to go back to the hospital in the afternoon for the rest of the test.
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ok was doing fine, then all this stuff with the biopsy Tuesday has me crying at the drop of a hat. I have no ideal why, I'm told this is pretty much routine with taking Tamoxifen. Geeze, I so need to get a handle on myself again. Ok done just needed to vent can't do it at home, the poor DH is having a rougher time handling with this one than me.
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mstrouble: Done? That was venting? Wow!
I think you deserve to let go a bit more; just my personal opinion! Why are you crying at the drop of a hat? Starts with a T, has an X in the middle and ends with N is most likely a large part of it. I send you a warm hug.0 -
Runfree,
So glad you have had a relatively mild experience w the SE's! Yay! And thanks for sharing..;)
mstrouble: I had the uterine biopsy...it hurt like hell!--not gonna sugarcoat that...;) BUT, it IS over quickly. I clenched the paper gown w a deathgrip to ready myself. The doc said IF it started to hurt too much to tell her & we'd stop & do it another time. I told her No Way!!! Just do it & get it over with! I survived...You'll get through it. **Some people take pain or anxiety meds before the procedure, but it truly IS over quickly. I'm glad I had it done, as my aunt had uterine cancer.
Good luck!0 -
Wow...this must be the biggest thread ever...Damn that Tamoxifen. Ok, well I just finished my 5 years. Still Pre-Meno. I live in Canada. Apparently in the US they are now doing Tamox for 10 years,,,in Canada not yet. Anyway, I am seeing my oncologist end of August. Don't know if I would want the extra 5 years anyway...I just don't know. Anxiously waiting my body to go back to normal hopefully without breast cancer.
I love the posts on the pets...I think somewhere in this thread I posted my dogs and cat. Anyway,,,I have 3 dogs (dachshunds), 2 cats,, and 1 husband. In that order...lol
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mstrouble - So sorry you are having the crying spells. That was venting??? Let it go - this is the place to do it. We all "get it" and certainly understand. Uterine thickening is very common while taking Tammi. Some have it worse than others. Let's hope this is the last time you have to deal with this.
violet_1 - I wouldn't sugar coat it either. The biopsy does hurt like hell but is over relatively quickly. At least I won't have to do another one of those - no uterius let thanks to a recent hystie.
koshka - Congrats on finishing your five years. I hope you stick around and help others here. Not all oncologists in the US are going for the 10 years. My MO is telling me 5 years will be enough. The 10 years is still a bit controversial and not all MOs will be in agreement. Thank goodness for that - 5 years IS going to be my limit.
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Jo1955, thanks for the info. I'm scheduled to go in Monday morning, and they did tell me I will have to leave for a few hours and come back. I've been really paranoid about my health lately, and I'm trying not to be. I noticed the pain got worse during my period, and it's moved to the front too, not just my back. I don't see my oncologist for another three weeks. If the bone scan comes back clean I don't know what the next step will be..
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BethCon1 - I think we all reach the point where we focus on our health and any little thing freaks us out. Let's hope the bone scan will give you some answers. You MO visit is just around the corner so you will have the opportunity to discuss this with him/her. I know for me, my 3 year journey has been a living hell at times. Perhaps one day I will finally see that light at the end of the tunnel and can truly move past this. Best of luck on Monday and will be thinking of you. Please let me know what you find out. HUGS!!
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Hi Ladies!
I haven't posted in a while - I'm still having jaw/neck/ear/sinus pain - going on 2 years now. Is it the Tamoxifen? I don't know for sure but it does cause a lot of mucus for me and all sinus xrays come back clear.
Koshka - I'm in Canada too. I've been on Tamoxifen for 3 years now and even though I'm menopausal (since 2009) both my MOs want me to stay on indefinitely. Even more so since I've just been diagnosed with a bone met which they feel is being kept in check by the Tamoxifen.
BethCon1 - Do not fear the bone scan. Knowledge is power! I only wish I'd had one done at the get go. Maybe they would have found my bone met sooner - my MO and RO seem to think it was there from my original diagnosis in 2009. If the bone scan is inconclusive I would push for a PET scan. There is a bit of a wait but it felt really good to know that there wasn't any other lesions anywhere else in my body - except of course the spot on my femur.
I can't really say that I believe that anyone is cancer free since I've read that everyone has cancer cells in them. It must be something we do/eat/or are exposed to that triggers them to grow into lesions. Or maybe it's just bad luck!
The only things we can do is know our body, be vigilant and advocate for ourselves, become knowledgeable about our disease and live life to it's fullest every day!
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Where did everyone go? It has been really quiet here lately.
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Hey! im here, reading, and just catching up. I was on arimidex for 6 months, then doc said stop, and asked me to do tamox. sooooo, i have only taken it for two weeks, and my girl "DOWN THERE" today was really hurting. so i went and looked with a mirror, and it is horribly red and extremely painful to touch, because i went to put on burts bees equivalent of desitin. Hoooboy, OUCH! Now, ok, dont laugh, i have a cabbage leaf in my underwear cooling her down. it helps. so, i had been aware of a discharge lately, and knew that was a SE of tamox, but this is something else. cant imagine driving tomorrow for herceptin, but will on the off chance i will be able to see the ca centers ob gyn there. till then i have most of a head of cabbage left....
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Goodness Kathec, that is a new use for cabbage! OUCH indeed! I hope you get to see a gyn tomorrow, or at least talk to someone who can give you some short-term symptom relief until you can see a gyn. Kindly update us when you can.
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I will let you know! it is funny, but 10 years ago or so i had been reading online about yeast infections, and someonehad claimed that that was what their grandmothers had used to actually cure a yeas infection. all i remember from that time, is how amazingly cooling it had been. worth it though, cause now my man is calling me cabbage patch girl and laughing, so i am going to go chase him with the leaf and tell him his cabbage is "Cooked". ok got to grab a laugh where i can. I had to stop the arimidex, i was exquisetely sensitive to it i guess.
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Kathec, it's my understanding that tamoxifen can disrupt the pH balance of the vagina. Sounds like you have a doozy of a yeast infection! Hopefully your doc will give you something to clear it up quickly and can recommend something to use to keep things in check going forward. Hope you feel better soon!
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Me Too! Must be something with the weather! - I also had one hec of a yeast infection going on over the weekend! Very painful! Thank goodness for Monistat and the external cream...seems to have really helped. I hadn't gotten one of these in forever...but then realized just another gift from Tamoxifen! Good luck to all of you Ladies.
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