Hormone treatments, tamoxifen and tendonitis
Hi there, I'm very new to this, but wondering if anyone has experience of tamoxifen and tendonitis? I've had two different types of breast cancer, but one side was HER2Positive so since January this year I have been on anastrozole. In late July I got extremely painful tendon damage - a torn and swollen hamstring tendon near my seatbone, so it really hurts to sit, and two other gluteal tendons with tendinopathy as well - no idea what set these problems off, but discovered that anastrozole, in reducing oestrogen, weakens tendons. My Oncologist said suspend it, so I haven't been taking it since early August. She later offered me a script for Tamoxifen instead. As Tamoxifen also is designed to reduce oestrogen I am wondering whether I should switch to it or not? I don't want a breast cancer recurrence, but my life quality at the moment is much affected by the tendon problem which is not healing very quickly at all. It's going to take many many months I think. If I take tamoxifen now will I slow down the healing? What should I do? Anyone out there had any experience with tamoxifen and tendons? Thanks for any experience you can share with me!!!
Early Breast Cancer Treatment Decision
Hi All, I recently was diagnosed with early breast cancer (stage 1, grade 2, HER Negative, Estrogen & Prog positive, no lymph nodes involve) three weeks ago I had a double mastectomy with tissue expanders for reconstruction. I now need to choose my treatment for post surgery. For my particular case the percentage for survival purely doing the double mastectomy surgery alone is 95% when I add hormone blocker treatment it adds another 1% so 96% total which has been recommended by my oncologist to take which I will. I have been also given the option to decide if I want to also do chemo or not, the percentage benefit for my specific cancer is less than 1% at about 0.3% (so the percentage still stays at 96% survival) Is there anyone with a similar case to mine and what you decided? Or if it was you what you would do? My immediate thoughts are for a 0.3% benefit that going through 6 months of chemo with everything that comes with that is perhaps not worth doing it? The other thing I will point out is if there are any tiny microcells left in my body anywhere that hormone blockers will stop them dividing and growing, but chemo would actually kill them. Bearing in mind there is no guarantee either way that reoccurrence will or won't happen. Thoughts?
Exemestane, anyone had this?
Hi everyone, I am going to be going on the hormone blocker Exemestane, I was hoping others may have had this and could tell me what to expect. I could've had Letrozole but was put off that one by someone, not sure if I should have it or which one? My specialist didn't seem bothered which one I had. Any feed back appreciated, all the best from Cindi x
capecitabine (oral chemotherapy) after AC/TAXOL, radiation and surgery
Hello! Just wondering if anyone has been offered capecitabine additionally to their care after having standard of care treatment for Hormone positive, Her2 negative BC. I am 29, have completed 8 rounds of chemotherapy plus surgery and will be having 25 rounds of radiation. My oncologist has recommended 6 months of capecitabine as an additional adjunct therapy. I had a second opinion with another oncologist and she didn't seem to have the same opinion. I have done a little bit off research but there isn't a lot of people with hormone positive BC that have been offered this (that I can find). Thoughts? Thanks ladies! x
PMS during menopause 😳
I never thought I’d say this, but I’m really looking forward to my Zoladex injection tomorrow. Why? So it will continue to keep me in artificial menopause, so these PMS symptoms can bugger off again!! 🤨. So yeah, PMS and artificial menopause, both at the same time. Who woulda thunk it. So basically, I get 3 weeks of feeling wonderful, and then one week of feeling moody, overly sensitive, angry, sore, tired etc, just like I did when I was not in artificial menopause. Had to check with the McGrath nurse to make sure I wasn’t going insane, and yeah, Zoladex tends to start wearing off towards the end of the 28 days, before the next injection is due. Feeling these PMS symptoms again, after having felt the freedom of not having them, made me realise just how tough they were, and how hard it was going through all that every single month for almost 30 years!! Not to mention the actual period, which lasted 7 days and was heavy. My goodness, what a freaking Wonder Woman I am!!! All that, while working and life in general!! And then for men to have the audacity to say to me ‘why are you so angry??’ Knowing full well exactly why 🤦🏼♀️🤦🏼♀️🤦🏼♀️. On top of that, my right hand is numb and weak thanks to Letrozole. I can’t feel anything with it. Can barely open a jar. Joints and body aches when getting up, takes a minute to be able to walk and move. All I gotta say is, to all of us incredibly strong and wonderful women, is: I am strong, I am invincible (although don’t always feel like it), I am woman! 👊🏻💪🏻🦸♀️👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻. It’s slowly becoming my new favourite song. Love to all ♥️ M Xxx
Treatment Reaction after herceptin and perjeta
Anyone developed welts/rash like marks after treatment with herceptin and perjeta? I have itchy, red blotches over my chest, underarm and back which are showing no signs of going away. Initially, I thought they were insect/mosquito bites but, on reflection, think it's unlikely the suckers could have got through a thermal top and woollen jumper. The welts appeared a day after IV treatment with the drugs, which I've been on for 18 months without this kind of reaction. We're heading for the Flinders Ranges and a long way from my GP or oncologist and I don't want to alarm the old man by trying to find medical treatment if it's not necessary. Any advice would be appreciated.
Weight!!! Non exisitant metabolism - hoping to find someone like me!
hi ladies, I was diagnosed with stage 3 estrogen positive BC three and a half years ago start of 2015. Whilst I was finishup up my treatment (surgery, chemo, radio, exmestane, more surgery), my thyroid stopped working and I was then diagnosed with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, they are not sure how/why it was brought on. Then after all that I was diagnosed with the BRCA 2 gene a year and a half after my initial diagnosis so after having an initial double mastectomy, I then had a preventative total hysterectomy and oopherectomy and take an estrogen blocker for 10 years so I really dont feel very female anymore :( I went into a chemical menopause in 2015 and then in 2016 I went into a surgical one. All of this happened in my late 30’s and my weight has really suffered for it, as a result I have very bad self esteem and it also does not help my husband cheated on me with two of my friends after I was diagnosed and just 6 months after we were married in 2016, we have a little son so I’ve stayed - it’s a daily battle for me though. My metabolism is non exisitant and so I am hoping to find other women with the same make up of ‘issues’ as me (without the infidelity) to see how they are managing. is there anyone out there with: 1). estrogen positive breast cancer 2). that’s had a total hysterectomy, 3). that has hashis 4). is on an estrogen blocker? praying there is.....
