Chemotherapy and Menopause

au0rei
au0rei Member Posts: 248
Hi all,

I had four rounds of chemo from Jan to April. My period disappeared after my second chemo and hasn't come since. I am 43.

Did any of you have this happen to you? If so, did the period ever return? Just wondering if I am already menopause lol.

Thanks.

xx

Comments

  • Nadi
    Nadi Member Posts: 619
    Same thing happened to me. I was 47. If you don't have a period for a year they call it chemo induced menopause. I haven't had a period in 18 months.
  • au0rei
    au0rei Member Posts: 248
    Thanks @Nadi I wonder how our hormones are like then haha... since there's no periods.
  • Nadi
    Nadi Member Posts: 619
    Many chemo drugs destroy our ovaries and therefore we stop producing the hormone oestrogen which affects fertility and periods. That's why a lot of women in their late teens or twenties are sometimes asked to consider freezing their eggs. Lack of oestrogen also effects our moods. 
  • Barney74
    Barney74 Member Posts: 89
    Hi ladies great something to look forward to NOT.im 42 and starting chemo shortly i was told i could start early menuopause. Not sure if im looking forward to that ,i know one thing i wont miss havinga period anymore when that decides to happen.Take care xx
  • Hi, I was 42 when I had 6 months of chemo and my periods stopped for 2 years and then returned at the same time as my hair straightened out! 
  • Deanne
    Deanne Member Posts: 2,163
    Hi,
    I was 47 when I had chemo. My periods did not stop until my 4th dose and returned 18 months after I finished chemo. This came as a big shock as I had been told that I was in menopause by my oncologist and that it was most likely permanent.

    I have since had my ovaries removed as I was er+ and wanted to change from Tamoxifen to an AI for better protection against recurrence.
  • au0rei
    au0rei Member Posts: 248

    Nadi said:

    Many chemo drugs destroy our ovaries and therefore we stop producing the hormone oestrogen which affects fertility and periods. That's why a lot of women in their late teens or twenties are sometimes asked to consider freezing their eggs. Lack of oestrogen also effects our moods. 

    I would be a bit surprised at this. If this is the case then why do I hear so much recurrence, and usually recurrence is due to oestrogen's work, wasn't it?
  • au0rei
    au0rei Member Posts: 248

    Deanne said:

    Hi,
    I was 47 when I had chemo. My periods did not stop until my 4th dose and returned 18 months after I finished chemo. This came as a big shock as I had been told that I was in menopause by my oncologist and that it was most likely permanent.

    I have since had my ovaries removed as I was er+ and wanted to change from Tamoxifen to an AI for better protection against recurrence.

    Are you on hormone replacement since ovaries are removed? xx
  • Nadi
    Nadi Member Posts: 619
    See https://www.bcna.org.au/understanding-breast-cancer/treatment/chemotherapy/ for more info on chemo and oestrogen. Apart from reducing oestrogen chemo also affects our eggs.  
  • Deanne
    Deanne Member Posts: 2,163
    edited September 2017
    Hi @au0rei
    As my breast cancer was hormone positive, I cannot be on hormone replacement after having my ovaries removed. My ovaries were removed so that I could further protect myself from a recurrence of the cancer by changing from one type of anti-hormone medication (Tamoxifen) to a different type (Femara or Letrozole). Femara gives a slightly better protection than Tamoxifen but you can only take Femara if you are definitely in menopause.

    I was 49 when my ovaries were removed and as I had already been through chemo induced 'menopause' I did not really feel I went through anything dramatically different to what I had already experienced. I only had 3 periods between coming out of the chemo menopause and then having my ovaries removed.
    xxx