Lumpectomy, chemo, radiation now ARIMADEX
I am supposed to start Arimadex this week and quite simply, I feel quite negative about it. Has anyone else gone down the really healthy eating/lifestyle, plenty of exercise, as little stress as poss...
Forum Discussion
Why not give it a try? It might not be as bad as you think. If the side effects are very unpleasant you could always ask your doctor whether you could switch to tamoxifen. I have been on tamoxifen for just on 3 years with no adverse side effects except a thickening of the uterine wall (which was detected by a pelvic ultrasound and treated with a D&C - very common on tamoxifen apparently).
I feel fine on it and have declined my oncologist's suggestion (after chemo put me into menopause) that I switch to an aromatase inhibitor such as Arimadex because I have read so many posts about their unpleasant side effects. But having said that I have never tried them myself so perhaps they could be fine. I am just inclined to stick with what I know is okay for me. My oncologist doesn't seem to mind that I'm staying on tamoxifen btw, as long as I'm taking something to reduce the risk of recurrence.
Either way there are are pros and cons. Tamoxifen has side effects for some people and slightly increases your risk of uterine & endometrial cancer (hence the pelvic ultrasound). I was very reluctant to start taking it at first but now it makes me feel protected to some extent. I do try to live a healthy lifestyle as well, lots of fruit and veg and exercise and less stress. But I think it's safer to take some sort of hormone blocking/minimising medication as well after estrogen positive BC. I think when my five years is up I will be a little nervous about stopping it.