FEMARA
Comments
-
Gingerstx, you're the best! I'm ready for my first RAD tomorrow and I'm nowhere near as worried as I was. Big Hugs!!!!
0 -
Hi JanetFrancis
Glad to join our page! I personally want to congratulate you taking Femara for many years without wanted to skip it. Many of us wanted it. Looking at SE's from aromatase inhibitors there is said: can cause more heart problems, Speak about to your cardiologist!
Stay connected!
Best wishes
Usha
0 -
Dear Femara friends hang on there.
I have been having more frequent bad femara days since December , my worst was in easter. Very stiff all the time could not move all day , I had Tam for two years, I had Femara for three years minus 6 weeks, and I stopped the Femara. Yesterday ONC said OK. I hung on there the whole five years minus 6 weeks, If I did it so can youuuuuuu.
0 -
JanetFrancis: When my MO wrote out my prescription for Femara she told me that now the researchers are saying "at least 5 years" and that she might keep me on it longer, so your doc is probably just trying to cover all bases. The multivitamin I take in the morning only has 200 mg Calcium Carbonate in it so I take 1200 mg Calcium Carbonate with D (400 IU) before bedtime to give me the extra dosage required by females. In the morning I also take an extra 1000 IU of D3 to help with my bone health. I've been osteopenea (pre-osteoperosis) for several years and am rying to forestall any further bone denisty problems which I understand could be exacerbated by Femara. I'm also almost 68 years old and had all the "normal" age-related joint aches long before I was diagnosed last December, so I take Osteo Biflex for that. Mine says to take two pills a day, so I take one in the morning and the other before bedtime.
As far as you heart rate and other aches and pains, make sure you talk to your doctor about them. If your MO or RO won't do anything about them, see your cardiologist. About a third way through my rads treatments my BP jumped from its normal readings in the 130's to readings in the 150's, despite my taking my regular high BP meds. I told my RO about it several times and her response was that I should see my GP about it. The catch was that I wasn't at home but staying with relatives for those 2 1/2 months, and my GP was 1500 miles away! Once I did get home and took my BP, my readings were back to normal! OK, maybe it hadn't been due to the rads themselves, but I think our bodies "have a mind of their own" and even though I'd not "felt" stressed, perhaps the treatments were making me stressed.
Rohanna: Because I had to hold my arms up in that over the head position for at least 5 minutes longer, the only rads I didn't look forward to were the once-a-week session during which they also did some mammograms. Otherwise, the rads were a piece of cake and I never, ever worried about them. My rad techs were the greatest: caring, sensitive to my needs and concerns, and always upbeat and I'm sure that's what made the difference for me! Have a great day!
0 -
I just refilled my femara prescription and I was given a bottle with pink pills. Mind you I have been taking Femara for almost 5 years and the pills were always yellow. The bottle does not say Femara it says Letrozole (which I know is the proper drug name) and says it is a subst for Femara. Has anyone had pink pills? I want to make sure it is the correct drug. Is this generic drug? If it is it still costs over 1,500 dollars for 3 months but I only pay $3.
0 -
femara just went generic--has anyone had any issues with it? My old one was yellow, this one is pink....
0 -
I got the pink pills too and have not felt any different than with the regular Femara. I also was on Femara before rads and had no problems. I have been on it for 7 MO's and still no major SE except for joint pains when I get up from setting. I am taking D3 and multiple vit. but not calcium. Will check that out. I already had problems with my thyroid, hyper then hypo after iodine treatment. On synthroid. Helps so much to take it at night.
0 -
Yes........the generic is pink. I have them also.
Hope everyone has a great Memorial Day weekend and be thankful for the ones who keep our freedom.
Norma Jean
0 -
Went to obgyn had test done everything fine. He told me since I had breast cancer that i needed colonoscopy I had one in 2004 but he said that I need one. Went to colon dr he also said i need it so will be having it done 6/13/11. I pray everything will be ok
0 -
nanna, I was told the same thing. I had no idea colon cancer and breast cancer were some how tied together. In my case it was my insurance that called the Dr. to request the test.
0 -
Thanks girls, I also had no idea the Breast and Colon cancers were possibly linked......I guess that's going to be another question on the list for when I see my doc next.
0 -
It will be on my list of questions, too. Nana, did your obgyn say how often you'd need to have a colonoscopy done now? It used to be every 10 years if your test was negative.0
-
My obygn told me last year ask my onc about it. I did and she said no. Well when went to my obygn for pap. He asked me if i had it done told him she said no.He said he was goin make me appt.That they were tied together.We need get checked. Will find out after i have it done how often i need have it done.
0 -
Hi ladies
I would like to share my experience with you: March 2009 I have the surgery of colon adenocarcinoma (stage I, no nodes, no therapies). I was doing fine, felt OK, till in Oct. I found a lump in my left breast. I was said it's the same adenoma as in colon. (stage II, all possible therapies) Have had colonoscopy same weeks ago - all OK.
We really should take care about all possible symptoms!
Best wishes
Usha
0 -
Well you got me curious, so I went on Google to find out what I could about the relationship between the two cancers. Here's the best info I found:
http://coloncancer.about.com/od/faqs/f/Breast_Cancer.htm
Does Breast Cancer Increase the Risk of Colon Cancer?
It basically boils down to genetics. You may have heard of BRCA 1 and BRCA 2, commonly referred to as the breast cancer genes. Some research has determined that the BRCA genes increase colon cancer risk and other research has shown that they don't. There's also a genetic disorder called Peutz-Jeghers syndrome (PJS) which is known to increase a person's risk of both breast cancer and colon cancer.
BRCA Genes and Colon Cancer
These genes are actually a double whammy for women because they increase the chances of breast cancer and ovarian cancer. Scientists have looked into their triple-whammy potential (colon cancer) with mixed results.
For example, research published in the journal Cancer Genetics and Cytogenetics found that breast cancer plays an important role in colon cancer development. However, research published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute found no association whatsoever between breast cancer and colon cancer. Then there's another study, published in Diseases of the Colon and Rectum, that determined breast cancer doesn't increase the risk of colon cancer but it changes the way people get it. Sounds a little odd, right?
It's actually pretty interesting. Researchers examined data from about 750 people, a third of whom had the BRCA 1 or BRCA 2 genes. Turns out, women and men with the BRCA genes weren't any more likely to get colon cancer than people without the genes. But, the people with the BRCA genes who did get colon cancer got it about five years earlier (age 62-ish rather than age 67-ish) and had better survival rates.PJS and Colon Cancer
Unlike the BRCA genes, PJS is pretty straightforward. People with PJS have more than a 90% chance of developing cancer by age 64. They're at increased risk for several types of cancer, but breast and colon cancer top this list. So in this case, does breast cancer increase the risk of colon cancer? Sort of. If you're diagnosed with breast cancer and found to have PJS, then you're at increased risk for colon cancer. But that's pretty unlikely since PJS occurs in about one out of every 120,000 people.
0 -
Ginger, Thanks for the link. It is an interestin thing. I never heard of PJS before. I know I wasn't tested for BRCA since no one under my age has gotten breast cancer before. I believe my mom was the only family member with BC and she was 81 when it was found. I was 56 so much younger than her.
0 -
I never heard of PJS either (but then, before being diagnosed, I never heard about a lot of breast cancer related stuff) so here's what I found out about PJS:
What is PJS?
- PJS stands for Peutz-Jeghers Syndrome (pronounced pertz yay-ger).
- PJS is a rare inherited disease that affects approximately 1/160 000 to 1/280 000 people.
- PJS is inherited in an autosomal dominant pattern: an affected person has a 50% chance of passing the condition on to each of their children, whether male or female.
- PJS is characterised by freckling, gastrointestinal polyposis and an increased risk of developing certain types of cancers.
- Not all patients show all of these features or develop any particular feature to the same extent as other PJS patients, that is, PJS is different in each patient.
0 -
rohanna....sorry so long to get back to you. Have been out of town. My joint pain after starting femara was severe! It lasted about a year and almost went away. The only thing I can attribute it to was my increasing Vit D3 to 5000 iu per day.
I used coconut oil and aquaphor after rads. But anything oily needs to be cleaned off before the next treatment. Don't want to fry yourself. I have no change in my skin since rads. No color changes or anything.
Good Luck!!
0 -
I've been on Femara for almost 3 years, and just recently had my Rx filled with the generic Letrozole. Made by Teva Pharmaceuticals and the pills are yellow, and in the same type of blisterpack as before. Haven't noticed any difference in SEs (which are minimal now anyway!).
0 -
Thanks jacee. Did you use the aquaphor every night? I'm afraid I'm going to make the little clear circles and ink marks come off. I didn't get permanent tattoos because the dr. said they don't do that anymore. I'm going to ask the RADS people tomorrow what they recommend, but I find more and better information on this site. My chest is marked up like a tic-tac-toe board and I have those little circles on BOTH sides. I hope I have the same results with my skin that you did!
0 -
Rohanna: Sine I'm up early, let me chime in here: I used Aquaphor and had the magic markings along with those tape circles. Don't worry about making them come off: They're pretty hardy; I never lost a tape. The ink marks can be affected but if you apply your Aquaphor while looking in a mirror, you'll do a pretty good job of avoiding them. What you will notice is that either before or after your treatments, the techs will touch-up whatever markings are starting to fade. Once your rads are done, it all will wash off and you'll find that having no ink marks left will help you start to feel "normal" again.0
-
I had rads 2 years ago and they used permanent tattoos. I was told they do this because you should never have radiation to the same area more than once, by permanently marking the area it would tell future radiation techs the area that should be avoided which kind of makes sense to me. The tattoos are mainly in areas that no-one else will see, just one shows when I wear a v neck or vest top but fortunately it is not that noticeable - I think probably only one person has ever made a comment about it.
0 -
Hi Gaynorl
I have had permanent tattoos too, but only 4 prickles and some washing markings..
0 -
Wow...didn't know this about the numbness in hands/feet. I have had that going on for several months. I have 3 more Femara pills to take to complete the 5 YEAR course! So excited! Hoping that the tiredness that I have experienced for 5 yrs will disappear! lol Really hoping it isn't just b/c I am old and fat! Hang in there, gals! Life is worth it! Hugs!
0 -
congrats Shelby-how nice to have your end day so close!
0 -
Congrats Shelby and I hope that you continue to stay well and cancer free!
0 -
Thanks, gingerstx. I'm really glopping on the Aquaphor because I am already sore. I hate this! It feels like this monster is going to hang on to me for the rest of my life. I know there's light at the end of the tunnel, but it feels like an oncoming train. Oh well, at lest tomorrow is Friday. Can't wait to rest the poor abused skin! Have a great weekend!
0 -
Hi Ladies
I stopped femara 6 weeks short of completing 3 years after 2 years of TAM. Does any one knows why are some people continuing to 7 years of hormonal therapy. My ONC is not a breast cancer specialist he said 5 is enough since I developed reumatoid artheritis, I just need to make sure I am doing the right thing.
HH
0 -
Good question Infohh! I think maybe our MO's really aren't sure and that a lot of this stuff is "let's give it a try and see what happens..if a little bit works, more might be better." I have a friend whose daughter is a BC researcher at Georgetown who is constantly experimenting and looking to see what might work better than what's been done before. Also, since the Femara is an estrogen inhibitor, perhaps they've found that some women naturally produce more of it and therefore need to continue inhibiting it longer? In my own case, my MO doc said I might have to be on it more than 5 years. I didn't ask her why but my ER/PR scores were very positive so maybe that's why?0
-
Thanks ginger
I was thinking that maybe lymph node envolvment was a factor too????
HH
0
