Arimidex
Comments
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I'm sure any reporter would be happy to quote your confusion, mistaking recurrence risk for overall survival risk.
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OKAY - I have a question: If the opposite of recurrance is survival, why are we arguing??????
I haven't started Arimidex (yet) but this thread has been part of my resource for finding out about generics, se's and such. Please stop and let's go back to offering support to those (such as myself) who are deciding if they are going to take or are taking Arimidex.
Can anyone give me their experiences on AI's if they have had to switch between the three?
Thanks!
T.
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I have been fine on Arimdex, but know others who have switched around because they've had better luck with one over the other as far as SE go; I'd say to go into with an open mind but know that if you do have major SE there are other options available. Maybe someone who has switched around will chime in with their thoughts.
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Prayv
As my onc. explained, Arimidex and Femara work at the breast to inhibit estrogen, while aromasin stops the production of estrogen at the source (where ever the source is maybe someone has more info). 60% of women experience some manageable side effects. What is important to remember is that diet and exercise and keeping a low BMI are crucial for the effectiveness of the drug. I got switched around a bit...arimid. then aromasin but in the end returned to arimidex but a smaller dosage.
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Adrenal glands in post-menopausal women is where our estrogen is being produced.
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Thanks ruthbru....
yes you are right,,,and another place is body fat! That is why we have to keep a low BMI.
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Exactly....now I am really going to sign off and go walking!!!!!!
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I am wondering if the experts are seeing any difference with side effects with the 3, and does it have anything to do with where they remove the estrogen. My onc. has told me she is fine with any of the three. If the side effects are to hard for me to handle I can try one of the others. She just wants me to use one because my cancer is 97%ER positive.Karen
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kira -
I heard the same thing from my onc. I started on Femara but switched to Arimidex because of the side effects. Since then, I've retired so the side effects aren't as much an issue for me. My cancer is 100% ER positive so I believe an AI is a necessity, particularly given my stage IV status!
E
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Ok, enough already....this is just getting ridiculous....
mathteacher - after my dx of mets to the bone in September, I have been taking Arimidex - my first 6 months scan showed COMPLETE resolution of many lesions, SHRINKING of some, STABILIZATION of some - would this not indicate that it is WORKING?????? And not some bogus pill the onc has had me take for the sake of the drug companies? Might I be able to speak with your reporter friend and tell my little story?
prayrv - I have no clue why there is this arguement other that for the sake of having an arguement - seems quite silly to me but everyone is entitled to their opinion...
On that note...for those who are truly interested in continuing to take Arimidex and coping with the se's and such - I am going to start a new thread and see if we can get this back on track.
Debaters...please stay on this thread and have at it...I will be sure to include in my post that there is much debate going on about the use of Arimidex should one be so inclined to have a look but kindly allow the new Arimidex thread to truly be a helping place for those of us who have to take it....thank you.
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I'm very disappointed at the generally angry and negative responses to my email (mollyann excepted), not to mention overly defensive. I'm also sorry that there is no room in this forum for discussion, Otter, since that is what the board also is supposed to be about. And by the way, you are welcome to "wander" yourself right off the board if you don't want to be exposed to any opinion which differs from yours. Since many of you missed the entire point, my posting was aimed at finding out how other women addressed the concerns which made me decide not to take arimidex. Nor did I offer any opinion as to those who decided otherwise. For those who inquired, my reference to a 40% benefit was because only one receptor would take up the arimidex-based hormone; so the benefit would only be 40% of whatever percentage benefit Arimidex offers. Good luck to all.
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I will be right with you Lowrider as I choose to take Arimidex and its working for me, I am now NED. Thank you Arimidex !!!!!
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To shift gears, I wanted to point out another important aspect of exercise and body composition.
My own opinion is that we need to also be doing as much strength training as our condition permits. This is so we maintain muscle mass or rebuild what was lost during active treatment.
This is true for post menopausal women in general, and AIs send us into a kind of super-menopause. So I just finished my weekday weights/crunches routine. This tones my upper body, and whips my lazy abs into submission. Importantly, it increases my base metabolism (so I can continue to eat!!!) and also helps maintain bone denisty.
The only downside is that clothes shopping is a lot more tempting, so have to restrain myself.
Most of us are focused on aerobic, and that is great (do my share of this too) but wanted to point the need for basic conditioning/strength training exercises as well. Exercise balls and free weights are cheap, and for those of us who can do these routines, a wonderful investment of time. I realize that not everyone is this fortunate, though.
Heck, I have solved some major business problems during my AM routine, so a major brain stimulator as well.
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cs718 - don't be disappointed - I read your post and you were expressing your opinion - you made what you felt was the right decision for you.
I think things have gotten heated due to the Aromasin issue. It is, afterall, our lives we are making decisions about and an informed decision is always best. I elected to take it with good results...I can only hope that it continues - at stage iv, it can go either way - that is the most frightening part of it - breast cancer sucks period - there is no one treatment that is going to work for everyone, everytime, all the time - so, we keep trying until one does work, change to another if it fails, keep going and hope we can stay alive long enough to be here when the next new kick ass treatment comes along. I suppose that would make us all guinea pigs in some way - I, for one, don't mind one bit if it lets me open my eyes to greet one more day....
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Thanks for that info Claire. I do a lot of cardio right now but not any strength training. Maybe that's what I need to maybe start losing some of my weight I gained. I will definitely give it a try. It can't hurt.
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mathteacher - go ahead and call your national reporter friend. I frankly don't care. And I don't think there is a story here. But even if there is, I resent your threat and the fact that you have lowered yourself to try to get us to agree with you. IMHO, you have missed the point of what is being said. Agreement is not necessary. But respect for other's opinions is.
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Thanks Low Rider. I am going to check out your thread and recommend it to a friend from a different thread altogether who just commented to me today that she couldn't come on here anymore because the bickering is so NOT what she needs right now.
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Mathteacher and Mollyann.....
I will be polite here, but want to point out why we are so angry. The advice you are so blithely dispensing could cause any one of us who is ER+ to DIE!!!!!
Yes, DIE.....
To make things even worse, neither one of you appears to want to read the research which is out there and which I have read. Or have an intelligent discussion with your oncologist as to "why" and the relative benefits.
You have to trust someone in this situation, and I would challenge you to come up with a rational answer as to why that should be anyone other than my oncologist......someone who has devoted their life to studying cancer and its treatments, and has devoted their lives to helping people.
Just had to convey my anger............some things are harmless, such as whether I eat broccoli vs carrots.......but the AI discussion isn't harmless.
Because your well-intentioned, but ill-guided counsel could cause me to DIE.
So please answer.......why do you want to KILL ME????????
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Good bye to all the great ladies on this thread. It has been a pleasure to know the original posters! Will talk to some of you later. Have to find Low Riders thread.
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Just wanted to comment on Vivre's "doctors are tools."
Last time I saw my onc. I asked "so what are your thoughts about the comment we often hear that doctors are brainwashed by the pharmaceutical companies?".
He replied "yes it is very true in subjective medicine, they can say what they want. But in oncology it is completely different. There are controlled studies and they can only make claims from the results of the studies."
Just thought I would share it with you. (my onc. and I are on very good terms).
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I'll find the new thread.
I'm an attorney by the way. We just love to debate. However if I want to indulge in that I will find a thread set up for debate. For now I will just mosey over to the new arimidex thread, set up for the purpose of us arimidexians supporting each other.
Ciao.
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But before I go I have one question. Can I say "rat's ass" here?
Mathteacher, I don't give a rat's ass about the difference between recurrance risk and overall survival benefit. If you want to find someone who does, try starting a thread on it. I know what I need to know about arimidex.
NEWBIES - ARIMIDEX HAS BEEN SHOWN TO REDUCE THE RISK OF THE RECURRENCE OF BREAST CANCER. THERE ARE SOME POSTERS WHO ARE DISTRAUGHT THAT THERE HASN'T BEEN A DRAGNET, EXPOSING ALL OF THOSE MEN AND WOMEN WHO WORK TIRELESSLY TO FIND A CURE FOR CANCER, BECAUSE THEY MAY NOT YET KNOW WHETHER THERE IS AN OVERALL SURVIVAL BENEFIT ASSOCIATED WITH THE USE OF ARIMIDEX.
NOW I DON'T KNOW WHETHER THERE IS OR NOT, AND YOU KNOW WHY? BECAUSE I DON'T GIVE A RAT'S ASS. IT'S DOING FOR ME WHAT I NEED IT TO DO - HELPING TO LOWER MY RISK OF GETTING A RECURRENCE. THAT ENHANCES MY CHANCES OF SURVIVAL! AND THAT MAKES ME VERY VERY HAPPY!
That's why they call me Happy Trisha.
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I guys, haven't been on for a couple of days, but have been reading and dizzy from all discussions.
As from my previous posts regarding hand and joint problems from A, I have been off since June 16. I thought I would be back on A by the 21st of July. I trust my onc completely as he is a well known cancer doctor in my area. He may not put me back on A but I believe Femmera. He also told me I am reading too much and making myself crazy. He said that the hand problems from A will continue if I go back on it. At this point, I cannot wait to go back on what he recommends and to prevent any chance of reocurrence of this lousy disease, which I fought, and won and want to continue to win. Everyone is absolutely entitled to an opinion, but I trust my doctor.
Hugs,
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Painterly.....I need to take issue with your comment that 'arimidex and femara work at the breast....and aromasin at the source....to inhibit estrogen'
NO !! All three aromatase inhibitors prevent the conversion in the adrenal glands of the enzyme aromatase into estrogen.Aromasin has a slightly different chemical structure,but otherwise they are the same.
You may be confusing tamoxifen, which works by attaching to estrogen receptors in the breast; it does not inhibit estrogen in any way.
I have been following this thread with interest,even though I have been taking that other 'A' - aromasin, not arimidex. I cannot believe the way things have been going the last few pages......but then there always seem to be folk who love to throw a spanner in the works, seemingly often without suitable evidence.This should not be a reason for people to leave this thread - it would be better to simly ignore the nay-sayers.
Good luck to all of you,
Sam
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Hi Sam,
I can only go on what my oncologist told me when he wanted me to try different A's. I shall take it up with him on my next visit.
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Hello to all my old posters!!!
I have been MIA for a while...loaned my lap top to my daughter and found that the creaky bones did not like sitting at the desk to use the desk top.
I am about to celebrate my 1st anniversary of both my completion of treatment and the start of Arimidex. Yes, the side effects have been nasty...but I am ALIVE. I went to see my ONC (Claire-Seattle...I go to the Seattle Cancer Alliance...I am from Kennewick) my numbers were amazing. Why ? All the wonderful gals and all the great advice I received when I started on this thread. I had put on weight ...but managed to have it off plus some before my appointment. Low carbs. I punched up my protein intake,lowered my fat and kissed sugar good bye. The Dr. was quite amazed at my supplement intake (thank you JO) .It works.
I had a partial mastectomy that at first did not seem to have changed my breast size...six months after rads when all the swelling had subsided I was very lopsided. Since my insurance covered "return to symmetry" I headed off to the plastic surgeon. I had one breast that was a DDD and one that had settled into a D. I was not certain the first few days after the procedure that I had done the right thing. At 60 years old I did not handle the anesetic well.....after all with counting that sugery I had had 3 sugeries 2 other procedures and radiation in 14 months. It all took it's toll.
I was allowed to go off the Arimidex for two weeks around surgery time. In that short time I lost the aches ,started to "wake up" and the hot flashes began to subside. Did I want to throw it away ? Yes! I almost cried when I took the first dose again...BUT I WANT TO LIVE !!!
Nice surprise...the new bottle went from $108.00 to $64.00 !!!! YIPPEE! I did notice a few pages back that Costco had good prices...I will be checking that out.
Thanks again to all of you who are helping me on my journey. Hang in there. Love to all ! Catch my hug!
Teri
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Postmenopausal women who have taken tamoxifen for 2 years as adjuvant therapy are less likely to experience a recurrence of BC AND have improved OVERALL SURVIVAL if they switch to anastrolzole....JOURNAL OF CLINICAL ONCOLOGY
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Janeluvsdog...nobody is designating a thread that keeps OS a "secret". A "secret"? Are you delusional? These women, like myself, just want a place to relate because they have made a choice to take AI's, AFTER weighing the pros and cons. PLEASE leave them alone, you are ineffective and mean spirited.
Mathteacher...LOL!....I am shakin in my booties! To the thought of your suggestion of this topic to your "reporter friend", just maybe she'll want to interview those "who want to block the Arimidex survival information" Yea, we WANT that, bring it on!
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Mountains1day,
You're confusing the Tamoxifen + Armidex combination with Arimidex alone which was the subject of this thread. Tamoxifen has been around for years and thus has an Overall Survival record. Arimidex does not have an overall survival track record. Studies are still ongoing thus Arimidex is experimental for overall survival.
I don't understand why you get angry with the facts. Ask your oncologist. Don't shoot the messenger. I will keep repeating the facts. Those who want to run away from facts, fine.
I'm just thrilled so many people are getting the evidence and sorting out the truth.
Thank you all for the supportive PMs!
Blessings
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Janeluvsdogs,
Not confused at all, Arimidex (the subject matter) was used and proven more effective than Tamoxifen in certain subtypes. I think we all get the fact that AI's OS benefit hasn't been proven yet because they haven't been around as long as Tamoxifen. This seems to be the point you want to hammer and we really do get it. However, nobody is discrediting that fact, nor is anybody "running away from facts" as you say.
Most of us here know the facts, we know the "truth", we know the risks and we've made a choice. Okay, now run along and stop being a pest. Besides, AI's are likely to prove superior in OS much like Herceptin is paving the way as we speak.
Thank you all for the supportive PMs!!!!
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