Hormone therapy resistant
Hi! I was diagnosed with bc at 62, had a lumpectomy and radiation and am now 63. Currently I'm having a hard time moving forward with hormone therapy. My MO is prescribing Anastrozole for five years but I am worried about the many side effects, especially weak bones I had a bone density test six months ago and I have some osteoporosis. In a few weeks I have a three-month follow-up appointment with my RO. I have been in touch with my MO's NP who was helpful but I am still stuck.
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Hi Saffron6158
I already had osteoporosis when dx with breast cancer. My Oncologist was ok with me being treated with Tamoxifen however I got a 2nd opinion and that Dr highly recommended an AL. I ended up figuring that even if Tamoxifen wasn’t the most effective according to that Dr, I didn’t want my bones to get any worse and choose Tamoxifen for treatment. Making a decision about medication that you can stick with is important although some patients end up needing to switch medications in order to tolerate hormone therapy. Good luck with your upcoming appt and deciding what to do.
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Thank you, veeder14. My biggest concern is starting on hormone therapy then having to take an additional drug to treat a side effect that may occur. I do not take any medications so just starting a daily pill for five years is really hard for me. Praying for clarity.
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Dear Saffron, how great that you have been able to avoid having prescriptions for so long! As a retired pharmacist, I can assure you that many people are not as lucky. However, with age, it’s almost unavoidable that some chronic condition will rear its ugly head.
Indeed, medication cascade is a real thing, using additional drugs to treat side effects of the original one. If you don’t want to take tablets (even just once a month), there are injectable options which have good efficacy.
Presumably, you’re already doing other things to prevent bone loss becoming worse - weight bearing exercise like walking, taking calcium & vitamin D, etc. Best wishes for confident decision making and good health in the future.
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