Tamoxifen: to take or not to take?

I am so glad to see you took my post in the way I hoped....I am a bit of a frank, up front, heart on sleeve kind of girl and after I pushed send I thought...have I gone too far? Whilst I totally respect everybody's right to make their own treatment choices, I guess I also respect my right to jump up and down on other women's behalves and say 'do it, try it, grab every opportunity medicine throws your way to get well and stay well (weller)." I often wonder when I read of the complaints about these medications that at the end of the day it's more a case of "welcome to menopause" -- we just get welcomed into that club a little earlier than we'd like. And we can't take HRT (but given the risks who would want to). So would these women with the bad side effects be any different if they were just experiencing normal menopause? Perhaps not. I have friends who have suffered hot flushes for years and years and they're nowhere near a tamoxifen or femara pill. My mother sufferes from excruiating arthritic pain and has done for decades. No cancer, no femara, just her lot in life. Lots of people live with pain, with aches, with niggles. Is it so bad to put up with that we'd risk getting a mets diagnosis if there is a chance we might keep that monster at bay? No brainer at this end of the keyboard. The idea ot taking drug holidays terrifies me. And I have to admit...I get all judgemental when I read of people who do...sorry but I will be honest and I do... I freak out if it's 8.05am and I haven't taken it yet, cause I usually take it at 8am. Truly obsessive but working for me as a concept ;-). I'm sorry for you, as I am for me and the whole rest of everyone on this site that  have to look forward to a daily pill (one bad side effect is that it reminds you every single day what you have had whether you want to think about it or not!) and if you decide to go forth and take it, I sincerely hope it is as kind to you as it has been to me (and I'm on the harder stuff).

All I can say is when the recurrence freak outs happen (not a day goes by this does not enter my head), I calm myself by remembering, I did the mastectomy (the idea of dicking around with a lumpectomy/clear margins/radiation just was not for me and I truly did not care and still don't about having lost a boob, apart from the pain it is to find clothes), I did the chemo four time times in three months to mop up anything that was out there, I take a pill to striip me of ostregen every day, I eat well, I've given up alcohol, I still have to lose more weight and exercise more, but beyond this there is nothing more I can do. Nothing. So it calms me to know I've done all I can. And hope for all of us long and happy and well lives.

You'll see me on the recon page in the not too distant future Lou...but for now it's prepping for yet another mammogram for my first year check up. And I'm also organising to have an MRI. Don't trust them mammograms which can miss things (even though I've had four in the last 9 months...I have to hope the odds are in my favour on this front! Surely they can't miss something four times in 9 months?!)

Hope the strapping removal procedure goes well and all is good.

Squiriming a tad as I think about what you've gone through. Like I said before ... you been much braver than me so far!

xox