For Arimidex (Anastrozole) users, new, past, and ongoing
Comments
-
Hello Ladies,
I've been on anastrazole for 7 months and am just now developing some of the annoying SE's....trigger finger, muscle soreness/stiffness, brain fog, vaginal dryness etc. Nothing debilitating but definitely noticeable. I met with my onc last week when I finished my year of Herceptin (yea!). He mentioned that we should consider having me take the AI for 2 years and then switch to Tamoxifen. I was surprised by this as I am post menopausal so I thought Tamoxifen was not the best option for me. He said it was - any one ever hear of this regimen for post-meno women?
Annie
0 -
That is odd advice. Do you have bone issues or something? If not, that doesn't make any sense to me.
0 -
Annie,
I have a friend who was post-menopausal that took Tamoxifen for 5 years. She has osteoporosis.
Just wondering, no real info here, if he feels you would get the benefit of both meds. Before AI, everyone got Tamoxifen.
0 -
Als have a lower recurrence rate, which is why they are the first choice for post menopausal women.....unless there are other health concerns such as osteoporosis.
0 -
At one time all they only had Tamoxifen, everyone got it. There are many post menopausal women on Tamoxifen. I've been on Anastrozole for 3 years (currently finishing up my 1 month break ). If Armosin has the same SE I'm sure my MO is going to want me to go on Tamoxifen as well.
0 -
I am so much better on Tomoxofin. I was on Anostozole for almost 3 years...just got too difficult. Pain was waking me up, not letting me sleep and thought I was getting bone mets, or something bad. Within 3 days, my pain was gone...my MO did not even suggest other AIs. Of course, she did not believe the pain to be related to Anostosole. Had a scan, no cancer found....thank goodness. I just feel relieved about retaining my bone health, as I am osteopenetic. I am post menopausal.
0 -
But doesn't tamo increase cardiac issues? Clots, stroke, MI?
0 -
yes, a whole set of new SEs. I chose my poison because of my osteopenia.
0 -
Guess I'll just do periodic vacations. I've already tangled with clots. That got me 3 days in the hospital.
0 -
no bone problems, stay on Arimidex, then. My family history has osteoporosis but not clots. I will listen to my body carefully. I am doing Lagos suggestion of the walking with Leslie Sandstone daily, so I am feeling pretty good, I am fending off bone problems and osteoarthritis and osteopenia. Thanks again, Lago;)
0 -
Stage1 you will eventually outgrow Leslie. I'm back outside doing my 5 miles. Leslie for me is good when I can't go out and don't want to go to the gym.
But with all my walking, strength training supplements of D & Calcium as well as eating yogurt daily I still went from osteopenia to osteoporosis on Anastastrozole. For some of us exercise isn't enough on this drug
0 -
yes, I change it up. Sometimes I get my 10,000 steps in by doing both outside and Leslie. I got a Fitbit and that helps me track food and exercise. I am doing slow weight loss, eating healthy as possible. Though, I am having trouble getting in my prunes and still losing weight. Trying tho, thanks to Ruth;)
I will not go back on Anostrosole...I will not sacrifice my bones. If down the road, Tamox does not agree with me, I will stop. So far, so good:)
0 -
Lago, just to clarify, my first sentence in that post was to answer Spookiemom. I am not on AIs anymore.
0 -
Lago, just a thought; your bone problems would probably been even worse than they are if you hadn't been so diligent.
0 -
Maybe ruth but who knows. I'm just over the line with my spine. Everything else is still stable in osteopenia.
0 -
I just tried to see if I can get my generics changed to Teva and my mail order pharm said I can only request that for brand names. In order to get my generics from Teva I need it written that way by my docs and it depends on if they have it in stock. And I can't go to my local pharm for more than 3 Rx. Gah! Frustrating. That's a bunch of work I'm not up for.
I am annoyed with my side effects from all my Rx. Two are labeled drowsy and dizzy SE, not including the anastrozole. I'm so freaking tired all the time!! All my joints creak and crack and pop. I'm rested only after 10 hrs of sleep. I'm 42!!! Instant menopause does not help. I guess I'm sort of in meltdown/disheartened mode over life after active treatment and I wish the easy answer was Rx mfg! I'm winding down with PT and acupuncture to free up summer time with kiddos. Next up is seeing an Integrative Medicine doctor for my hypothyroid. I have such high hopes for this. I'm really weary of being Medical Investigator (I know it could be worse!) just feel like I could function at an enjoyable level.
Pity party over.
0 -
Does your insurance insist you use the mail order pharm? I use Walmart for all my meds, but they can't get the Teva. Went to Walgreens, no problem. I won't use mail for ANY of my meds. Don't want them cooking in the heat.
0 -
yes, I have to use mail order after the 3rd month.
0 -
I thought my month vacation might help with the tired feeling. Not a bit. Not sleepy, just TIRED.
I'm going to check into hypothyroid, you too?
0 -
Bosum, yes. Here is some information from a website called Cancer Research UK.
"Tamoxifen has been used for a long time as treatment for early breast cancer. Arimidex is a newer drug and doctors wanted to see whether it could work better than tamoxifen. A large phase 3 clinical trial compared anastrozole with tamoxifen for post menopausal women who had early stage breast cancer. The study was called ATAC (Arimidex, Tamoxifen, Alone or in Combination). The women in this trial took the hormone therapy after surgery.
The ATAC trial involved over 9,000 post menopausal women with early stage breast cancer from all over the world. After these women had surgery for their breast cancer, they took either 5 years of tamoxifen or 5 years of anastrozole or a combination of the two. The final recruits joined this trial in 2000. The average follow up time is now 10 years.
The trial showed that anastrozole was more likely to stop breast cancer coming back than tamoxifen. You may hear this called disease free survival (DFS). Tamoxifen worked well and it is one of the most effective breast cancer treatments ever developed. But in this trial, the anastrozole seemed to work slightly better. The survival rates were the same for both drugs.
In women whose cancer did come back, it came back later in the women on anastrozole than it did in women taking tamoxifen. There were also fewer secondary cancers and a significant reduction in the number of women who went on to get breast cancer in the other breast."
0 -
does anyone have problems going out in the heat/sun? I noticed that when I was out in the heat and direct sun recently my face got all flushed - not sunburn red (I use sunscreen) but flushed and I can't stand the heat... last year I didn't go out in the direct sun as I was finishing radiation but last week and now today I had this experience.. could it be a side effect of this medication?
0 -
IamNancy, it's so strange that you should bring this up! A couple of months ago, I was washing my hands at the kitchen sink and the top of my left hand started to sting. I dried my hands off and looked. It was red and felt like it was burned. I thought it was just a fluke...maybe I ran the water too hot . Yesterday, I was burning some brush, something that my husband and I do frequently. I could hardly stand to get anywhere near the fire it felt so hot. My husband looked at my face and asked why it was so red! It was burned, like sunburn.
Is that reaction from the radiation? Or maybe Anastrozole.....in any case, I hate this CRAP.
0 -
Well, it must be the arimidex then. BosomBlues, you are right, this drug just keeps giving.
0 -
I never noticed my face getting red when I would power walk in the morning. I don't wear sun screen because it makes my face break out so I pretty much stay out of the sun or wear a hat. Also I have rosacea and other than the tip of my nose which is slightly red, my face doesn't get red.
0 -
it was just my face and it was red/flushed ...with all your responses, I am going to say -yes, it is the meds!
0 -
Well, I don't know. I think it was chemo that threw something off in my system and made my skin more sun sensitive. I have been done with Arimidex for almost two years now & I still have to be careful or I will get a sun rash......so it was either the chemo (because that's when it first happened) or it is old age!
0 -
Okay, I will vote for chemo since it CERTAINLY could not be age in either of our cases
.0 -
I have been taking Anastrozole for a number of months. I have some joint pain with it, especially in the morning, but once I'm up and going, it's not bad. I do take 50,000 iu's of Vitamin D3 a week, as my count is very low; 22 was the last take. I also take magnesium (powdered, a teaspoon in water every day - keeps everything moving).
That, and the Fish Oil I take (I know, fish oil has it's own issues) seem to keep the joint pain to a tolerable level. I may try switching to flax oil. I already add flax seed to my smoothies.
Regardless, the Anastrozole doesn't seem to affect my sleep much, and I do have a flash now and then, but I should, I'm 56, and just got 'kicked' into menopause when I was on chemo last year. If this is as bad as it gets, I'm on board until they tell me to quit.
0 -
A week ago on our first hot day I happened to clean the garage with a spurt of spring fever and energy. Now the PT tells me it was the perfect storm for lymphodema: heat, repetitive motion of sweeping, and lifting. Who knew. My arm still looks mildly swollen and I'm not sure if it is supposed to go down. I know this is the wrong thread for lymphodema, but heat is an enemy for all things I guess.
0 -
I have a sleeve for air travel and I cannot believe your MO said that! I mean, I believe it - because you're reporting it but WTF??
0
