For Arimidex (Anastrozole) users, new, past, and ongoing
Comments
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I am SURE they mean mcg. Nobody reads the fine print on the labels, just the big numbers.
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Yup 5,000 MCG/5mg. That's what I get from copy/paste from someone else's post.
5mg I got from the vitamine shoppe
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I was taking 1000 mcg. I'll see what I can find in 5000 mcg. Does brand matter?
HUGS!
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Hi, has anyone had a decline in vision ? I have been on arimidex 13 months. Significant loss of distance vision. Now diagnosed with macular degeneration.
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Susanrebecca,
Lago is correct. I had a lot of problems with Arimidex and my eyes initially. Took an 8 week break, then went on Aromisin and the same SEs came roaring back. I was afraid I'd have to stop AIs altogether. So I did a lot of research and had several tests to check on eye health with the ophthalmologists at the teaching hospital where I was getting treatment.
This is a summary of the only comprehensive research article I could find. http://www.aao.org/eyenet/article/watch-ocular-eff...
I'll look for the actual article and there may be newer ones out there now.
My problem was initially caused by chemo, but exasperated by AIs. I developed blepharitis, which is inflammation of the eye lid that clogs the oil glands. This mimics dry eye, but my eyes weren't getting enough of a layer of oil to keep the moisture on the eye. Besides extreme dry eye, I would wake in the morning with blurred vision that would not clear up until several hours later. In addition, chemo changed made my near and far vision for worse, but significantly improve the astigmatism. Go figure.
Estrogen is critical for good eye health, so those on AIs may have a range of eye problems that would come otherwise when we were older.
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Doxie after chemo my astigmatism was gone too. Of course now I have dry eye but so far have been able to just do eye drops 2X a day.
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Wow...reading all of this info abt eye issues am now wondering if the eye probs I have had lately are related to treatment? Will do some investigating...thank you SO very much for sharing!
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hardley any side effects on letrozole, a little insomnia, but not bad like anastrazole. Only thing i would say is the hair on my face is more than before, so now i shave. Hate that, but its doable
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Is anyone having issues with their teeth? I noticed this week that my front teeth seem to easily chip - I can feel it on the backs of my top two teeth, and I can see it on the bottom two. It almost looks like erosion. I wonder if this could be from the AIs (only have been taking them for six months) or it it's the result of chemo?
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pennsygal, it could be the letrozole, chemo or both. Please check with your dentist before too much damage is done.
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Thanks, Patoo. I made a dental appt for 8/6
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I just wanted to pop in and list my side effects, in case it helps anyone else.
There really is only one.
Boy are my legs HAIRY! A dark brown thick hair. Until now, I normally don't even bother to deal with the few wispy, hardly noticeable, almost blonde hairs. But HUGE change.
I'm off to find some spray on sort of Nair-like product and start removing hair at this late stage in the game.
So far no moustache and the armpit areas seem normal.
I hope you all are having a great day,
cb
PS I did NOT have chemo so I still have my regular hair as well.
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Hi all, I might be joining this group in September. I have been on Tamoxifen for 1 1/2 yrs with ,what is for me , unbearable side effects. I met with my onc for my six month check in and he has told me to stop tamoxifen in August so he can test my fsh, and estradiol levels. I've had the fsh test twice but now he's saying tamoxifen interferes with the accuracy of it. When I said it probably will end up lowe and show I'm not in menopause., he said it actually lowers the numbers. He expects them to be higher after being off the med for a month. I gotta say in not sorry for the break lol.
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BeachBaby65, Welcome! You'll find lots of great information and support here. I'm sorry that your sojourn on Tamoxifen has been so difficult. You're welcome to be here even if you aren't on Arimidex. We're open to everyone! Good luck with your tests and hope all your SEs go away on your break. (Did you have surgery? It doesn't show on your signature).
HUGS!
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Thank you Peggy, I had a lumpectomy in June of 2014. I'm wondering if anyone else has heard of HTs messing with fsh lab results?
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I switched to Arimidex after 5 years on exemestane. Definitely different side effects, I've been on it for 4 months now, and just switched to the Teva brand. I notice my pain is a little less, but fatigue, insomnia, headaches, hair loss, depression and night sweats have increased. Hoping that switching to the different generic will help with some of the SE's, if not will try the non-generic, and if it's still like this - maybe I'll just quit, I'm coming up on 6 years on the ESD. So tired of dealing with the side effects.
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I've been on anastrozole for six months and have had hair loss for about half that time. I asked my MO if anything could be done and she said I have a lot of hair so don't worry about it. If I keep losing it at this rate, I won't have very much in 4 1/2 years!
She also mentioned that the hair loss usually stops or slows down after a year or so. Since she was pooh-poohing my question, I wondered if she was saying that to pacify me or if it's true.
Is that anyone's experience?
Chubster
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I switched from exemestane (on it for 5+years), no hair loss, I've bee on anastrazole for 4months now and my hair justices falling out faster and faster. Really interested in hearing your experiences with that...does it really slow down at some point?
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Hi all. I've been told I'll be started Anastrazole after my MO appt next Monday. The chart on BCO listed below doesn't list hair loss as a side effect at all. Did your doctors say that was a side effect to begin with? I know experiences are what really counts! Thanks
http://www.breastcancer.org/treatment/hormonal/com...
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I have had no significant hair loss on this. Femara/Ibrance was terrible on hair loss....
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I've been on Anastrozole for 15 months. There hasn't been any hair loss.
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I have been on this poison for 6 months and not sure I can hold out for another 4 1/2 years. I think I have most of the side effects and I wouldn't call my pain an ache, more like I can barely move at times and I am on pain killers every day which I hate. I really feel like I am still on chemo, I finished back in Dec 2015. I thought I could get back to normal life and rebuild my body. I see my Onc next week and he will have to do some fast talking to keep me on it.
Karenaus
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Karenaus, you shouldn't have to hold on for another few years as there are other options available so give them a try and hang in there. You can do this.
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KarenAus I was just like you described after 3 months on Anastrozole. My Oncologist put me on a two week break. When I restarted I tried the name brand Arimidex. The improvement was astounding and while I know this won't be everyone's experience I'm glad I tried the name brand before changing to another AI. Was something my breast nurse told me to try and I have read it numerous times on here. It's the fillers that cause many of the side effects and different brands use different fillers. What brand have you been taking?
Quality of life is so important. There are so many difficult decisions we have to make. We all must chose what feels right for us.
Thinking of you and wishing you the very best. Hugs Donna.
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I have had severe joint pains from the Arimidex twice, both when the pharmacy gave me the "Accord" brand rather than the "Teva" brand. First time, I figured it out from comments on this forum and my MO changed the prescription to specify Teva. The second time, I just got lazy and didn't check the bottles. After about six weeks of doing things to help what I thought was plantar fasicitis that wasn't responding to treatment plus pain going to my hands and arms, I checked the bottle! Two weeks back on Teva and I'm fine.
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Karenaus I switched to Exemestane after 3 years of progressively getting worse on Anastrozole (Teva). My physical SE and sleep issues were almost gone complete on Exemestane.
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I have been on anastrozole (Accord) for 2 years. I have lost about 1/3 of my hair, and have a problem with my teeth cracking or breaking off. Side effects? MO said it probably is. sigh...... I think I will ask for Teva at the next refill time.
My sister's friend was on another hiking vacation and broke her foot. The ER doc looked at her meds list and said, "That damn pill!" Hm....
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Ohiofan, I've lost some hair too but I can't definitely say it is the anastrozole because of the huge stress I was under when it started. Have you been taking Fosamax or other bone-preserving drugs? That's really discouraging about your hair and teeth. Perhaps taking a different AI would make a difference.
HUGS!
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Anyone get peeling skin on their hands? Not a lot but just flaky all of a sudden everywhere on my fingers.....No big deal but curious.
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