Treatment after chemo

I had radiation after the chemo and then waited 30 days to start on hormone treatment. I am on Arimidex and I was pretty scared after reading all the side effects. Then I remembered the list of side effects for my chemo treatment, the drug companies have to put all the possible effects, even the rare ones. I weighed up the pros and cons, ( a possible reoccurance or maybe some side effects from the drug), I ended up taking the hormone drug and so far so good, bone density is a worry but I'm just happy to reclaim some of my life back, all the best, 

Hazel xx

Hi your oncologist and/or surgeon should be able to tell you the treatment timeline for you.  Alternatively, there should be a breast care nurse available who can tell you this, who you could either ring and ask or arrange to talk to next tme you are in for treatment.. A lot depends on what your cancer is receptive to(eg estrogen or progesterone hormone, or Her2), and where you are in the process. If you have been having neoadjuvant chemo, they may not know what they plan to do next until they have assessed what has happened to the tumor. Also, sometimes things get forgotten, and it is important to ask them about taxamifen and Aromase Inhibitors if you are hormonal receptive and have not been put onto this or told when you will. If they have not told you whether or not you are hormone receptive, this would be a good question to ask first.

I assume you are ERpos and/or PRpos and HER2neg because you have not had a Herceptin or Perjeta or other Targetted therapies for HER2pos (ie came up with 0,1+ or 2+ on the HER2test), and because you expect to have Tamaxifen. (I assume you know that if  ou are ERneg and PRneg, you will not be given Tamaxifen. 

Here are some of the common treatment timelines:                                                   A  If they think it best to try to treat or shrink the cancer before surgery                                                                                                                                  .....1) Diagnosis,                                                                                                                    2) Neoadjuvant (ie before surgery) chemo which may or may not include Tamaxifen or Aromase Inhibitors.                                                                                      3)Reassessment of tumor size and stage                                                                                  4) Surgery options: Lumpectomy plus chemo plus radiotherapy OR Mastectomy Or no surgery                                                                                            5) Hormone treatment AI or Tamaxifen started for hormone-positive cancers , with or without adjuvant chemotherapy                                                                                             6) Targeted therapy started for HER2pos tumors with or without adjuvant chemotherapy                                                                                          

B) If they decide to do surgery without neoadjuvant treatment, you start the process at 4) 

Never feel afraid to ask questions. The medical people may seem busy and important, but you are the reason they are there, you are the consumer, and you have a right to ask questions and get good answers whenever you need them. 

best wishes

As the other ladies have said,Tamoxifen is not as bad for lots of us as we first thought .I have been on it for about 10 months now,and the only side effects are hot flushes( which I had before,and now they have almost disappeared)and leg cramps in bed,which magnesium has been great for.Give it a try,as a lot of these things have huge lists of side effects.( but so do all other medications too).It would depend on your individual circumstances as to when you would start Tamoxifen,but for me,I started 4 weeks after my last round of chemo.I didn't have radiotherapy.All the best and stay in touch.cheersxoxRobyn.

As the other ladies have said,Tamoxifen is not as bad for lots of us as we first thought .I have been on it for about 10 months now,and the only side effects are hot flushes( which I had before,and now they have almost disappeared)and leg cramps in bed,which magnesium has been great for.Give it a try,as a lot of these things have huge lists of side effects.( but so do all other medications too).It would depend on your individual circumstances as to when you would start Tamoxifen,but for me,I started 4 weeks after my last round of chemo.I didn't have radiotherapy.All the best and stay in touch.cheersxoxRobyn.

As the other ladies have said,Tamoxifen is not as bad for lots of us as we first thought .I have been on it for about 10 months now,and the only side effects are hot flushes( which I had before,and now they have almost disappeared)and leg cramps in bed,which magnesium has been great for.Give it a try,as a lot of these things have huge lists of side effects.( but so do all other medications too).It would depend on your individual circumstances as to when you would start Tamoxifen,but for me,I started 4 weeks after my last round of chemo.I didn't have radiotherapy.All the best and stay in touch.cheersxoxRobyn.

I finished my radiation treatment (after chemo) back in early Nov 2012 and, with my oncologist's approval, waited until mid-Jan 2013 to start tamoxifen. I wanted to get through Xmas without side effects and give myself a chance to recover a bit before starting the next thing.

I was really worried about taking tamoxifen. I read so much depressing stuff online about it but it has been fine. I do get mild hot flushes but I expect I would be getting them anyway due to chemo-indused early menopause. I really don't have any side effects. I exercise regularly and try to eat a healthy diet and drink very minimal alcohol. I think all that helps. Almost two years on from finishing my treatment I am feeling great. So don't despair it might not be as bad as you fear. Good luck, Janet.

Try not to make any assumptions about tamoxifen. Most of us worry about it and then find it not near as bad as we thought. I have a few hot flushes but there are things you can do to help this. Lots of ladies (me too) find that magnesium tablets can help with side effects. I found they helped with energy/emotions and muscle cramps. Some people find they help with reducing the hot flushes too. I have found that getting some exercise each day seems to help my body cope with the tamoxifen. I have been on it for almost 12 months now. Hope it goes ok for you too. Take care. Deanne xxx

Try not to make any assumptions about tamoxifen. Most of us worry about it and then find it not near as bad as we thought. I have a few hot flushes but there are things you can do to help this. Lots of ladies (me too) find that magnesium tablets can help with side effects. I found they helped with energy/emotions and muscle cramps. Some people find they help with reducing the hot flushes too. I have found that getting some exercise each day seems to help my body cope with the tamoxifen. I have been on it for almost 12 months now. Hope it goes ok for you too. Take care. Deanne xxx

Try not to make any assumptions about tamoxifen. Most of us worry about it and then find it not near as bad as we thought. I have a few hot flushes but there are things you can do to help this. Lots of ladies (me too) find that magnesium tablets can help with side effects. I found they helped with energy/emotions and muscle cramps. Some people find they help with reducing the hot flushes too. I have found that getting some exercise each day seems to help my body cope with the tamoxifen. I have been on it for almost 12 months now. Hope it goes ok for you too. Take care. Deanne xxx

Unfortunately there are no hard and fast rules, medication starts at different times for us all. If you are not having radiation I am guessing that they will start you soon.

I do not find the side effects on Tamoxifin that bad, the hot flushes and cramps are the worst but I have managed that with Magnesium.

Good luck

Donna