Anastrozole

Wren20

Tell me your experiences with Anastrozole ladies !  Just started taking this a week ago.  I will be interested to hear your thoughts.

jennyss

Dear @Wren20, I just took my daily 1mg Anastrazole tablet with my first cup of coffee. I have been taking Anastrazole since Dec last year. This followed lumpectomy,  AC chemo and radiotherapy. I am very lucky; the only side effect for me of the Anastrazole was sore ankles in the first weeks, but this has stopped now. I also take Alendronate for osteoporosis therapy, and a daily calcium tablet to counteract possible bone density loss associated with the Anastrazole. Have you had your bone density tested?
 I think you will find some good posts about Anastrazole from the past on this network. You will learn we experience a range of  reactions to Anastrazole.
Best wishes from jennyss in Western NSW.

Wren20

Thanks Jennyss.  I am booked in for bone density test. My oncol advised Vit D.  Your BC regime sounds very similar to mine.  I asked about Anasrozole b/c the very first night that I took the first 1mg tablet, EVERY joint ached and after a week or so of it I have had hip, ankle, knee, finger etc. pain.  Unfortunately I also have Rheum Arth, diagnosed 2 years prior to BC, so the joint pain side effects of Anas, may end up being too much for me & an alternative sought.  All in all though, I am fine & pleased to be here !  

Finch

I'm about to finish radiation and will be starting anastrazole soon.  I'll be keeping an eye on this thread and more. Xxx

Adri

I see you all have been on Anastrazole for a couple of years now, how are you all.? I have been taking it for a couple of months and am fine. 

I never had a bone scan before starting it had it just a few weeks ago and Dr said I am osteopenic  so should do Zometa or Prolia treatment. Have done a lot of reading and don’t like any of this so am thinking I won’t go down that road. Are any of you doing this treatment and what are your thoughts. xx

Afraser

Interesting question - I have osteopoenic patches, and they shift - some get better, some get a bit worse. I asked my oncologist about Prolia, he didn’t suggest it. I think he’d prescribe it if I wanted (I’d have to pay) but I don’t really fancy it so we have both agreed to just keep monitoring. My bone density was excellent before I started femara, now it’s about average for my age (74). If it doesn’t get any worse, I’ll stay as I am. I know some on the network such as @Romla have found it very beneficial. 

Michele B

Hi @Wren20, my first time posting here for a while, but I do pop in and out and read how everyone is doing.
I recently finished taking Anastrozole after 12 months if it, folling 4 and a half years of Tamoxifen. 
My dr suggeated a bone scan before commencing the Anastrozole and was shocked to find I had severe osteoporosis in my lumbar spine ( he, along with my onc had been sure Tamoxifen would protect against any bone loss). I now have Prolia shots every 6 months to help the osteoporosis. 
For me, hand and finger pain was the worst on anastrozole as I already had some osteoarthritis.  Im pleased to say though, that my hands have improved a lot since ceasing tablets, except for tendon problems in thumbs. Give it a go, but if you find your joints are giving you too much grief, discuss options with your doctor.
Wishing you the very best, hope you can get some relief and can manage your pain.
Take care, Michele x

Glemmis

Hi @Adri, I have been on Letrozole for 3 years & have osteopenia. I am having 6 monthly Zometa infusions with 2 so far out of 6. I haven’t had any problems except flu like symptoms for a day after.  I will be having a bone density scan later this year to see what effect it has had. Also there is research that it helps protect against bone Mets so was worth it for me. 

Romla

@Adri I was osteoporotic prior to breast cancer and had had an osteoporotic fracture. As I am Er+ positive hormone therapy was recommended and in my case I was prescribed Letrozole.. Hormone Therapy thins bones so it was recommended I have 6 monthly Prolia injections.

Tbh I was more frightened at the prospect of Prolia than my surgery and radiation based on what I had read.I have had this injection now for 3 years and have had no problems at all.The injection is painless into the upper abdomen by my practice nurse .I was amazed when I asked around how many women I knew also were having the injection 6 monthly - some for osteoporosis and some for osteoarthritis.

With Prolia before starting you must have a through dental check prior to commencing as serious dental like extractions or root canals run the risk of osteonecrosis of the jaw. It is important to have regular 6 monthly checkups and I time mine carefully to be between injections as Prolia exits the body entirely after 6 months.Prolia builds bone but is a lifetime treatment as cessation causes rapid bone loss so it’s important to ensure injections are timed carefully to be 6 monthly.

Some years prior to Prolia I had been prescribed bisphosphonate tablets for my osteoporosis. I  needed a dental extraction and had great difficulty finding a dentist to help me .Idid in the end get help from the Professor of Dentistry here after performing cross laps testing to ensure bone was turning over. Both Prolia and Bisphosphonate tablets build bone but the tablets stay in your system indefinitely unlike Prolia ie the tablets carry a constant risk of osteonecrosis.

Unless you fulfill PBS criteria Prolia injections are very expensive around $280 every 6 months. The PBS criteria is 1) a diagnosis os osteoporosis. AND 2) over 70. OR 2) had an osteoporotic fracture. If you fulfill PBS criteria it’s around $38 every 6 months.

One final point it has been discovered that a Prolia works in conjunction with hormone therapy to further reduce breast cancer recurrence.

Hope this helps . I am doing fine on Prolia as are many other women I know - ask around you might be surprised how many women you know are also.

Emma17

@Adri @Romla

These journals reviewed the studies that linked Prolia (denosumab) with reducing recurrence risk and the authors do not accept the link for myriad reasons:

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanonc/article/PIIS1470-2045(19)30146-9/fulltext

https://www.ascopost.com/issues/june-25-2019/denosumab-prevents-neither-breast-cancer-relapse-nor-death/

https://www.medpagetoday.com/hematologyoncology/breastcancer/83757

https://www.cancernetwork.com/asco-breast-cancer/adjuvant-denosumab-fails-reduce-recurrences-deaths-early-breast-cancer

It is best to confirm the benefits and risks of the drug with your specialist.

I am posting these links as a reference and cannot engage in discussion about them.

Emma17

@Adri @Romla

The authors of these articles reviewed the studies that linked Prolia (denosumab) with reducing recurrence risk and do not accept the link:

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanonc/article/PIIS1470-2045(19)30146-9/fulltext

https://www.ascopost.com/issues/june-25-2019/denosumab-prevents-neither-breast-cancer-relapse-nor-death/

https://www.medpagetoday.com/hematologyoncology/breastcancer/83757

https://www.cancernetwork.com/asco-breast-cancer/adjuvant-denosumab-fails-reduce-recurrences-deaths-early-breast-cancer

It is best to confirm the benefits and risks of the drug with your specialist.

I am posting these links as a reference and cannot engage in discussion about them.

Romla

Thanks @Emma17 will take it up with my oncologist at review but not the reason I was offered nor  chose Prolia .

arpie

I've been on Arimidex/Anastrozole for nearly 12 months now - and am going fine.  Tho a tad stiff, I don't have the excessive joint pains & trigger finger that I DID have on Letrozole and Exemestane.  

Having said that - last night I was in excruciating pain for about 10 mins when (at about midnight) my left leg went into 100% spasm - it seemed that every single muscle & cell  from the knee down was bouncing off each other! It was all I could do not to scream in pain!  I was actually wondering how long I 'leave it' til calling 000!  If I moved my leg 1cm - it made it worse - leaving it where it was made it worse ..... I was almost in tears. 

This is the first time this has ever happened - and I seriously feel sorry for anyone who is in pain 24/7 - cos 10 mins of this was bad enough! 

Then it stopped!   I just hope it doesn't return - as it was truly horrible.  I do not know what caused it.

Take care, stay safe & well  xx

Wren20

Oh no....poor you.  That sounds very painful and a bit scary.  Might be worth getting it checked out.  Take care. 

arpie

Thanks @Wren20 - I see my Onc in a month or 2 - and will note it all down & show her!  It was really horrible - and as you say, scary!       Hopefully it was just a one off ......  

Wren20

It has been some time since I was on BCNA.  I am inclined to not dwell on all that I have been through for the past three years or so, that mostly continues, but to just do my things that I love, with people I love and focus on my health  issues when I have to !!