Topic: Fertility drug connection???

May 8, 2012 07:52AM - edited May 8, 2012 07:53AM by Momof2inME

I do think there is a connection. I did 4 rounds of clomid and 3 IUI's. Have 2 beautiful children that I wouldn't trade for anything. I'm 37 and stage 3. Found my lump 3 months after my son turned 1 and I stopped nursing. I don't know what the connection is whether its the fertility drugs, the subsequent pregnancies, or both. But I do believe something surrounding fertility contributed or "turned on" my bc. I have connected with several women on here that had fertility treatements as well then discovered they had bc. Some while pregnant.

May 8, 2012 08:10AM - edited May 8, 2012 08:11AM by SelenaWolf

It's hard to say.  My sister went through several years of fertility treatment with some pretty, heavy-duty drugs nearly twenty-five years ago and - thus far - she's okay.  Me, on-the-other hand, struggled not to get pregnant for twenty-five years and did develop breast cancer.

May 8, 2012 08:28AM - edited May 8, 2012 08:29AM by SelenaWolf

I have, also, recently seen a news documentary that suggested IVF children are developing more serious, health issues over the long-term than the general population.  I don't know what they used as their references, but it was a sobering thought!  I have to wonder, though; if it's media-hype or solid research?

May 8, 2012 11:40AM number5 wrote:

Ciao again!  I would never discourage anybody from using fertility drugs-they helped make my dream come true!:-)  I wonder though if there is something there that some of us have in us that is triggered by certain things!  We never know if we're allergic to something until we are exposed, yet that's how we find out-but we still go about our lives before that, even though we know other people are allergic!

I too would like to see some study or the other regarding this-though I'm afraid if they did one, people would back away from the dream of getting pregnant with the use of fertility drugs!

These are the things I think of when I'm pondering the why BC has affected so many people!

Grazie!! J

May 8, 2012 11:51AM RebzAmy wrote:

I was an egg donor for somebody - I went through the whole process three times for them which meant my body was flooded with hormones, firstly to do something called down regulating so that the person I was donating to was in synch with my body and my cycle, then I had to inject myself daily for 2-3 weeks (can't remember now) and finally the egg collection. It was a few months after the final collection I was diagnosed with breast cancer however mine was HER2+. In relation to the person I was donating to, this was a good thing because had it been hormonal cancer, they would have felt it may have been due to what I'd been through for them that caused this to happen but who knows!

R

May 8, 2012 07:02PM coraleliz wrote:

I went through infertility treatment. Clomid was implicated in ovarian cancer back when I took it 20years ago. It just gave me large cysts but no baby. I did the injectables with IUI & IVF(finally suceeded). I was later diagnosed with bilat BC. Here's my thoughts, my less than optimal hormone levels could have caused both my infertility & my cancer. Perhaps the drugs are irrelevant. I have no family history or any other risk factor other than being female. Still searching for something to blame my cancer on........

Dec 30, 2013 10:54PM farmerlucy wrote:

Srh - Here is a link to a BCO podcast that discusses highlights from the San Antonio Conference held a couple weeks ago. One of the highlights was a study re: fertility treatments and BC.  http://www.breastcancer.org/community/podcasts/sabcs-20131213

The podcasts were awesome and I thought quite hopeful.

Dec 31, 2013 04:54PM Srh242 wrote:

the podcast was interesting . But I still believe the fertility drugs are dangerous. Thanks,

A

Jan 2, 2014 09:34AM Janet456 wrote:

Very interesting.  Only two people in my family got BC - myself and my aunt.  We both took Clomid.

It was the early 90's - they took 13 eggs for IVF treatment which resulted in an ruptured ectopic.  I was nervous enough not to want to do it again so that was that and I am content with my lovely niece and nephew.  

Years later I vowed that I would never take HRT - but I developed BC before I got to that point so it's not an option now anyway.

Interesting thread.

Jan 3, 2014 01:30AM coraleliz wrote:

I "confess" to infertility treatments. My thought is that whatever caused my infertility(never clearly defined & the specialists never agreed with one another) might have played a part in my BC. I had bilateral BC from the start. The surgeon was surprised since bilateral disease is usually found in women with a family history. Everytime I see her, she asks me about my sisters. Nope, neither one has BC & neither one ever had kids. My BC struggles pale in comparison to my infertility struggles. I'll hold my rant, after all my infertility tratments ended 14years ago. I have one son living & feel very blessed. If it caused my BC, it was worth it!!!

Jan 8, 2014 09:06PM otceb wrote:

I just noticed this thread and had never thought about the possible connection between fertility drugs and BC, but it makes sense. I hope studies are being done about this!  I did one round of IVF in 2007/2008 and it was successful (one son who is now 5, healthy and thriving). However, BC/OC runs in my family so that one round might not be a huge factor in my case.

Jan 17, 2014 10:15AM 3BoyzMom wrote:

I hadn't given infertility any thought in years...until reading this!  I have no family history of BC and Mom and Sister did not have any infertility issues.  I, on the other hand, ovulated infrequently contributing to my infertility.  I had 4 pregnancies... 2 of which achieved with Chlomid in '98 and '99 and two without (was told giving birth sometimes corrects those issues).  I had tubes tied in my last c-section in '06 and have been REGULAR since - first time in my life!  Amazing how your body reacts to certain things.  Anyway, I was just diagnosed with LCIS in November and had a lumpectomy to remove it.  It didn't invade the healthy tissue and was removed so this week I started Tamoxifen.  Doing lots of reading and wondering whether there is a link to Chlomid??  We have to remember that there are lots of different kinds of BC and even if there is a link, the possibility exists that Chlomid isn't the 'lone' factor.  Just interesting and would love to find out more about this.  As others have stated, I wouldn't trade my kids (or Chlomid use to achieve them) for anything!  Chlomid allowed me to get pregnant which helped my ovulation issues and helped me to get pregnant without it twice more and then having tubes tied helped me to become regular!  Go figure!!  

Jan 17, 2014 02:57PM Srh242 wrote:

Interesting. Anyone with a lot of problems like chronic fatighe after infertility treatments?

Jan 28, 2014 09:38PM Srh242 wrote:

Bump

Jan 29, 2014 03:58PM Srh242 wrote:

Bump