Arimidex
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Ladybug, can't really answer you but you are going through a lot so just wanted to send you a gigantic HUG! Probably after the holiday more will be back on with tips and comments.
I am curious though that the recurrence was able to grow to 12cm without being caught. During the trial what tests were done over the 'almost' 5 years?
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Ladybug...for a tumor to be 12 cm it had to be growing for quite some time. Did you have periodic mammos or blood screenings? I can't believe your doc didn't feel that large of a mass!!!
I discontinued Arimidex for 2 1/2 weeks. Will start Femara on Monday. Last try will be Aromasin(?). Carpal tunnel surgery relieved pain in right hand...left is getting worse but afraid to get surgery due to lymphadema.
Hope others can send more answers!
Chris
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Patoo and Chris.....I really don't know how it was possible to have this size tumor overlooked. However, first of all, I had scar tissue in the breast from the lumpectomy and second, I have always had lumpy breasts. Neither I or the Drs. thought there was anything unusual until it seemed to just blossom. Suddenly my breast became hard, red, warmish and the nipple inverted; it seemed to happen within a month. In fact the clinical breast Dr. told me I had an infection and sent me home with antibiotics, four days before my diagnosis by a second Dr. I had regular blood tests and breast examines every 6 months with an oncologist during the last 5 yrs. I was on the clinical trial. So go figure! They tell me I did everything I could have done, yet I don't understand how this was missed. Clearly, like many of you, the mammogram showed nothing. In fact after the US showing the tumor, they repeated the mammogram and they saw vague suggestions but nothing definite. I was told if they hadn't already known, they would have said the mammogram was "clear".
The other weird thing is, I see ILC gals saying that their Drs. told them their 2-3cm. tumors had been there for over 5 yrrs. Well, in that case, how did a large excision lumpectomy 5 yrs. ago miss something that was supposedly already there for some time? It doesn't make sense and all I can conclude is that it wasn't there at that time, making it a little faster growing ILC.
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Ladybug: No offense indended....but your case is exactly what I fear. I don't want to have another cancer growing inside me that goes undetected for so long. It scares me that it can just be under the radar. As far as AI's go...I am still trying to find one that works for me. Don't know if coumadin would allow you to take Tamoxifin...I guess it comes down to which has the most benefit for you right now??
Take care....Chris
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These ILCs are sneaky and often large tumors. I don't know why they don't always show up on mammos. My doc missed mine when I had a physical 2 weeks prior to my mammo. I have always had dense, lumpy breasts so she thought it was normal for me. I am taking Arimidex but have no SE so I'm wondering if it is working. My onc says thay don't do estrogen tests so I have no way of knowing.
I'm so sorry your cancer reoccured. Hugs.
Roseann
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HI Jo and all,
I experienced a kind of sore throat during radiation... not really sore, but tight on swallowing. Lasted the second half of radiation. Cleared up soon after I was finished. Naturally the radiologist said it had nothing to do with radiation therapy
Since my recent knee procedure I cannot walk my usual 2 1/2-3 miles a day. Gradually every joint has begun to hurt, head to toe. I am sure it is from taking Arimidex and no exercise. I can't wait til I can walk again! This is miserable!
Still cleaning up and putting away from Thanksgiving... and eating leftovers!
pam
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I started Aromasin and Fosamax today. Hopefully I won't have as many joint issues as with Arimidex. I was told this has same benefits as Arimidex without the inflammation....I can only hope!
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Back from hunting ....I noted no responses about my libido question... I have been on arimidex for 1yr 7 months...I have and will have bone density test every year until I am off it!!! I also now have a cancer marker blood test done...not sure yet if that is yearly or once every 4 months,,,that is how many times I see my BS ( she believes in CA marker test onc did not do it well maybe once she did)....As I said in another post my onc had ovarian cancer and moved away but she fine with BS taking over my care...And I am certain she would send me to Onc if needed... Oh and I shot a deer and so did my 2 sons....
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lalewomen,
You could find a lot of help in the ''Mojo'' thread about libido I think it's in the ''Moving beyond cancer''
forum.
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I was away from home for 9 days on a road trip to Illinois for the Thanksgiving holidays. Managed only one short walk that was less than a mile during those 9 days. My body seemed to stiffen up more every day. I wasn't drinking the cherry juice or taking fish oil caps. I did take a daily glucosamine/chon tablet. Now that I'm back home and back to walking, I'm finding I can't walk as fast because of pain in the right hip joint. I'm hoping to get back to where I was before the trip. It's definitely important to exercise and keep moving when taking Arimidex.
Lakewoman, glad you enjoyed your hunting trip. One of my brothers is a deer hunter. He mainly loves going to his hunting camp far away from the everyday annoyances of work. Please don't construe the lack of response to a question as indifference. In some cases those of us who participate in a thread simply don't have any advice or information on a given issue. In my case, libido is far down on the list of my concerns. It certainly makes sense that estrogen deprivation isn't going to enhance anybody's sex life.
Chris, I hope your new meds work for you without the SEs you suffered on Arimidex. Let us know how you get along.
Ladybug, I'm so sorry about the recurrence. It doesn't say much for taking Arimidex as a safeguard, does it?
Aside from creaky joints and stiffness, I'm feeling pretty good. I sure don't get a lot done, though. Not sure if I can blame Arimidex! It could be a combination of getting older and getting lazier!
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Thanks to you both for your repsonses ,,,they were helpful! Have to check out the other threads. God's blessing to you all!
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Lake woman, I actually did try to respond to the LIbido question but had no advice to offer. My libido died. I think.
As far as hunting.........my son in law (in Maine) is an avid hunter and Inn Keeper. Go figure.
When he does hunt, we naive Massachusetts girls (3 dtrs of mine) ask if he "caught" anything. He laughs at us! I cannot understand WHY......:)
Sue
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Thanks Sue...Even though pushing 70~~~ I am going to resurrect my libido!!!!
...The CURE magazine gave me an idea and from there to online purchase it arrived today ! Glad your son-in-law "caught" something .You are funny. For me the woods is like God's cathedral~the deer a bonus!! .My husband and I going again~ this being the last weekend for rifle! Thanks Welga...but can't find MOJO thread>>
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Lakewoman! You are a hoot! I belong to a widow's group (basically sucks, to tell you the truth..) and too many compadres are trying to resurrect their husbands. It ain't gonna happen. One babe thinks she is just the cat's a$$ and has dyed her hair blond, is a tad chubby and is in love with mini skirts.. and tells me that when she dances. all the GUYS are looking at her. I am sure they are, but we shall not go there.But good for her feeling so good about herself.
SO GO FOR IT GIRL! I hope you find some info on this site. And I am 62 and have no idea what I am missing.
My dtr graduated from NYU and when she is not inn keeping with her husband (great place in Ogunquit, ME) she is teaching full time. SO, here is the kicker. Her husband likes to knock off squirrels in the winter. When I go up to Maine for dinner....some crock pot meal......I always have to ask for the INGREDIENTS.......I shall have to tell them that I met a sharp shooter on this site. I know they will be proud..........Sue
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Lakewoman, here is the mojo site.
http://community.breastcancer.org/forum/7/topic/69566?page=89#post_1617052
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Sue and lakewomen,
You both are just too funy!!! my family are hunters, but I was never good at it, too hard to kill those pretty dears, but I like what they bring back delicious meals we prepare. I love Ogunquit and Maine, spent at least 15 vacations there, so so pretty.
Welga
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lakewoman
I tried to get to the article and after seven days they remove them...did you learn anything? I am 60 and like you I want my life back. I have had some favorable results with KY liquibeads for dryness and KY Intense liquid.Not a earth shaking as advertised on tv but with more practice I hope things will improve. Good luck...beats nothing. I would really like to feel sexy again.
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I grew up in rural south Louisiana. My father and brothers hunted squirrels and rabbits in the winter, and my mother cooked whatever they killed and cleaned. Squirrel stew with a rich dark gravy made with roux was quite delicious served over rice. We also ate venison. The year after Dh and I married, we lived in Vermont and worked at a ski lodge. Our home was a trailor in a small trailor park with just 5 units spaced far apart. Our next door neighbor killed a bear and hung it in a tree since the whole outdoors served as a freezer during the winter months. When he butchered the bear, he gave us bear steaks, which we gladly accepted and cooked. They were good, as I remember. I think it was a young bear.
I'm feeling much better now that I've been back home several days and have resumed my walking. I'm also drinking the cherry juice daily again and taking fish oil tabs. Any time I sit for even a short time, like 30 min., I'm stiff when I first stand and walk, but the stiffness goes away quickly with movement. I feel sorry for anyone who takes Arimidex and isn't physically able to exercise. I think a month or two without exercise would leave me crippled.
Hope everyone is enjoying today.
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Wow, Carol you had a lot's of guts, to try all of the delicacy...I have (without knowing) had a meal of bear (young also) that my father cooked, it was very good, and he only told me after the meal caus he knew I would not have eaten it otherwise.
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Welga, YUP, love Ogunquit, ME. My dtr just sent me a video of her baby, Rachel, unloading the deer meet. The kid is 1 1/2 yrs old and can say "venison." Thank goodness it was all frozen and wrapped or I probably would have fainted. She was helping her Daddy stock the freezer for winter. My dtr also likes moose. Moose burgers. She actually says there is little fat in wild meat.
OH, Lakewoman, I did tell my dtr I met a sharpshooter on this site.
Have fun everyone; we had some snow here and it is pretty, but also a bit chilly in MA today. Sue
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I don't know if I would want to eat moose burgers. I love moose! Have only seen a couple in the wild. They're such ungainly animals and they're solitary. Remember the young moose in the tv serial Northern Exposure, set in Alaska?. I'm told that elk meat is quite good. Some hunters here in Louisiana take hunting trips to the western states to hunt elk. We saw several herds last summer when we travelled through SD, WY, and MT. They are such beautiful animals. My inclination is to take pictures of them and buy my meat in little packages in the supermarket!
Today was a very nice day with some of my family gathered at my mother's house. I enjoyed playing with my nieces two children, aged 4 and 7. Hope everyone else had a good day.
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You hunters might enjoy this story. My daughter does not.
She and her boyfriend were skiing for the day in northern Maine and on the way home, in some rural back road, a baby moose jumped through the front window of his small Honda. The car was totaled. My daughter has a facial scar near her chin which is not noticeable but it is there. The moose took its last breath in my daughters lap. They described the "locals" reaction......"you gonna take that with ya?"....gross. They were fighting over the moose meat and the antlers which were kind of large. Needless to say, my dtr and her boyfriend at that time easily parted with the carcass and all the meat. I think her old boyfriend still has the antlers. Sue
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Sue, that is NOT the way I would like to see a moose in the wild! Same sort of accident with my youngest sister on an interstate here in Louisiana. A deer was crossing the interstate between Baton Rouge and New Orleans and leapt onto the windshield of the car my sister and her family were travelling in. Car was totalled. Deer was killed. All human passengers were okay, thank goodness. Word went out about the deer and some locals came and took it away. Better than having it decompose along the highway.
Rainy, dreary day here. I have a hair apptment. Hope everyone has a good day.
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Carolehalston, I agree with you 100%. I guess you have to appreciate the old Mainers, a yuh, and I think it best that the townsfolk took the carcass. Sue
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On another note, I just got the Arimidex refill with what seems like a lot of updated info on the enclosed flyer. I am sure I ready everything but this was quite extensive, listing many many SEs.
dizziness, anxiety,back, bone,breast, joint or pelvic pain. constipation, cough, diarrhea,flu like symptoms, hair loss, headache,hot flshes, loss of appetite (yeah, sure wish this would happen!), sweating,tingling or burning sensation in fingers, wrists and hands; trouble sleeping (I have this), vaginal dryness, vomiting, weakness, or WEIGHT GAIN (oh, yes, I have this and this is really pi$$ing me off),
CALL MD stat if calf pain (would indicate a clot), chest pain, dark urine (liver invovlement), depression, fainting, fever, chills, sore throat, frequent or painful urination, mental or mood changes, one side weakness (indicative of a stroke I believe), skin problems, swollen lymph nodes ,vision changes, tiredness or weakness, shortness of breath.
What a delightful piece of reading. The only thing I have is weight gain and some hip pain. Anyone have luck losing weight? I have been so busy painting walls and wood work and eating little but I still feel like a big marshmallow, especially with my newly found muffin top. I do have a new long line bra with my prosthetics but I am sure if I wear it, say for Christmas dinner, I will have shortness of breath. I am getting embarrassed about how chunky I look. I used to hate the 36DDDs but perhaps they were covering up my muffin top. I also think my scale is broken.
ANY suggestions on this weight stuff? I would appreciate it, thanks, Sue
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JO, my twin, I'm with you - no wild meat for me. I'm just a strange eater and if it doesn't seem, look, smell or appear okay I don't want it. My ex is from Tobago and we went down on vacation one year. They had chickens and goats just wandering around the back of the house and then one of them would be on the table at night (after seeing the chicken hanging in the back yard with the blood draining) - too fresh for me. I'm a city born and bred girl so give me my meat days (or weeks!) old and chock full of chemicals.
Probably what gave me BC - oh, that belongs on another thread! LOL
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Oh yeah, same trip we went to see them kill a pig and then they roasted it - nope, I didn't eat!
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Another venison story...
Before we were married someone gave my husband to be a venison roast, raw. First, it was too big to fit in any pot he had. Used a hack saw to cut it half and roasted one half like you would a beef roast. It was too tough to chew. So he cooked the other half in a pressure cooker. Even worse. So he ground it up and made a pot of deer chili. It was like eating chili made of chewing gum. He finally gave up and threw it all out. Obviously there was something we did not understand.
pam
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Jo, you are toooooo funny! Sue
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Here in south Louisiana, venison roasts are cooked with pork roasts. The pork roast shares it fat with the venison, which has no fat. You use a lot of seasoning (we use a lot of seasoning on all meat!). Onion, garlic, chopped green onions, red pepper. My hunter brother will take a deer carcass to the game processor (butcher) and have the entire deer made up into sausage which is a blend of venison and pork. He sometimes has the venison made into ground meat, too.
This same brother raised rabbits for eating a few years back. They were big fat rabbits. He gave me two, all cleaned and ready to cook. Very pretty white meat. I cooked one with lots of seasoning. My husband, who refuses very little in the category of food, wouldn't eat it. I was insulted because I had gone to a lot of trouble cooking the rabbit. My husband's refusal had nothing to do with the appearance or taste. He finally said, "I'm not going to eat Thumper"! Nor is he going to eat Bambi! He like to shoot at skeets and targets but wouldn't think of killing an animal.
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