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kim1961's avatar
kim1961
Member
2 years ago

Tamoxifen

I am 3 yrs post diagnosis grade1 stage 1B as I had 1 lymph node involved …I had surgery and radiation but no chemo and started on Letrozole in April 2021 was going ok for about a year then the joint pain started to get bad I persevered for another 18months until I could not walk up the stairs at work or chop my vegs for tea so I had done 2.5 yrs….changed to tamoxifen mid November and the hot flushes became more intense but was so good to have minimal joint pain …..however I have lost weight (not a bad thing in itself) I think this is due to no appetite…..I noticed some anxiety about mid January but it settled and I thought I was doing ok but the last 4 days the anxiety has really kicked in …racing heart and nausea are horrible and I have even been or the verge of tears for no reason at times …I do have a follow up oncology appointment in about 3 weeks but I have decided to have a break until then and see if it settles ……sorry for the long post ….but has anyone else experienced this sort of side effect or is it just me 
  • Aska's avatar
    Aska
    Member
    2 years ago
    Hi @kim1961
    I am on tamoxifen too, since August.  I've lost about 4kg but have stopped losing weight now. I get anxiety in noisy environments.  My biggest challenge is fatigue.  I have acupuncture once a month to help with hot flushes. 
    Xx
  • kim1961's avatar
    kim1961
    Member
    2 years ago
    Thank you for your response did you loose weight because you lost interest in food or was it from anxiety/nausea ….i have just started to struggle with the fatigue ……were you on a AI before Tamoxifen or did you start straight on it 
  • Aska's avatar
    Aska
    Member
    2 years ago
    Hi Kim
    I just lost v interest in food coupled with mild nausea.
    The fatigue was a real struggle for the first 10-12weeks commencing Tamoxifen. Now i just get tired and ready for bed by 730! No I just went straight on Tamoxifen once I finished radiation as I am still perimenopausal.
  • kim1961's avatar
    kim1961
    Member
    2 years ago
    Hi 
    Thankyou 
    I am not as nauseous today it’s day 4 not taking so I think that must be the reason so I will have a few more days off then try again and see how I go ….i do worry about the uterine cancer risk though because I already have had bowel cancer when I was 47 so it’s 15yrs ago but then I get breast and also thyroid so 3 types of cancer so I am going to ask about a hysterectomy on my next visit