Bottle 'o Tamoxifen

molliefish

I have cramps in my Calves on occasion. Which translates to off n' on here n' there. The best prevention is to remember to flex your foot, toes toward your chin and hold on for the couple mins til it passes. Usually when I go through phases of cramps this works. The caveat is that the 'periods of cramps' are sometimes every day for a couple of weeks. I suffered from similar camps as a child and youth. My Dad used to come and massage the knots out of my calves in the middle of the night. So for me this is not new. Just a pain in the arse. I'm not sure what causes it. They used to say dehydration. I take a cup of waterto bed every night but don't often finish it. So maybe so. Best wishes.

9lives70

I was wondering who the manufacturer

of your tamoxifen is since your side effects seem mild. You can find this on the bottle… Seems that some are much better than others in terms of side effects

9lives70

I was wondering who the manufacturer

of your tamoxifen is since your side effects seem mild. You can find this on the bottle… Seems that some are much better than others in terms of side effects

Lafish

hi 9lives70, it says APO - TAMOX 20 mg, not sure if that is a brand name.

Lorri70

I threw out the box but mine is actually called "tamixofen" not any of the other names

Hopfull2

mine says tamoxifen too but says MFR: Mayne pharma

Lorri70

The blister pack says Tamixofen generics (uk) limited

Lafish

Thanks so much for the advice, I'm going to attempt to remember to go to bed tonight thinking about toes to chin Molliefish, I'm also going to start on magnesium Artista928.

I'm also wondering about whether anyone switched from AI's to tamoxifen and found that their hair stopped thinning? I have very thin hair at my crown, ok actually bald spots when my hair is wet, just wondering if I might have some hair re- growth in those areas. A girl has to dream right?

caro46

I have hot flashes, lots and intense hotflashes. Brain fog, especially before my periods. I have developped IBS, not sure if its because of the Tamoxifen but my oncologist says its possible. Weight gain, about 25 pounds over my weight before the start of Tamoxifen. Vivid dreams, I wake up 3 to 5 times a night.

Artista928

My hair thinning has slowed down noticeably. Note, I had hair loss thinning issues pre-cancer. I really didn't think my hair would come back at all. Genetics for me. But showers are more tolerable now that I don't see such large amounts of hair having stopped Letro and am on Tamox again. I'm just hoping what flew off will come back. That I don't know. Hope so!

I will add to that I don't have warm flushes or noticeable one since I started taking tumeric-curcumin. I got the sports research brand (with black pepper) off amazon and pop 2 pills a day. So I'm guessing magnesium and this are curtailing them. If I feel anything it's like the start but then that's it. Hoping this is the magic potion and it holds. Weather is warm here and won't be cool anymore so want to have this figured out before the heat is on.

gardengypsy

Artist~

I just got back on the T with you. To fight the hotflashes, I have my Tumeric and Gabapentin. I think the Lexapro helps, as well..

gardengypsy

9lives~ Before taking a break, I was on T for 6 months.

I believe hat my side effects have been relatively mild as well. Mine says "Tamoxifen" by Mayne.

Laureneliz

Artista - Did the dr. say that would help to take one in the morning and one at night? I was taking my zoloft in the morning and the Tamox at night but I had to start taking the Tamox in the morning due to sleeping problems. Therefore I am now taking both in the morning. I am wondering if I should take the zoloft at night.

At some point I hope to switch to Effexor.

Pamela23

Lafish--try potassium, like a banana. It helps with muscle cramps like charlie horses.

Hopfull--discharge is a side effect of tamoxifen too but fingers crossed it's your body coming back!!

Hopfull2

hi everyone. So I've been on tamoxifen since 3/23/17 and today I've been urinating every 10 min. It doesn't hurt when I go but my left side hurts a little. I'm scared what if I have something pushing down on my bladder. I'm gonna call Dr tomm

Artista928

Gardengypsy- Good luck to you too. I have gabapentin just in case. I was told this is like the anti-depressants in that you can't just cold turkey stop. You'd need to gradually ween off of it if you want to go off of it. So far my warm flushes are minimal some days none so I haven't popped that pill.

Lauren- The concern was that even though you can take certain anti-depressants with Tamox, it can interfere with the effectiveness of Tamox some. Since I really should be on an AI this made me change my routine. Maybe do Tamox in the am and Zoloft at night. And about Effexor... just my experience as I used this for a long time for depression, long before cancer. You will know if you miss a dose at a certain time of the day. Mine was around 3:00 pm for an am dose. Felt sick, fluish. And when I slowly weened off of it I still had horrible flu like symptoms for a long while. Horrid stuff for me se wise when weening off or not taking a dose within x amount of time. This is common. Hence when I see "Effexor" I cringe. Never again.

Hopeful- I doubt it's a se of Tamox. Maybe you have a UTI. I'm battling one now. Do call your doc tomorrow. They should do a urine with culture test I would think.

Lafish

thanks Pamela23, I will try potassium as well

Jumpship

I have finally gotten control of the side effects of tamoxifen. I take Tumeric. No hot flashes but occasionally joint pain and short term memory glitches. But my panic about ovarian cancer is increasing. I have one genetic marker that MAY contribute to ovarian cancer. Jury is still out. Of the 5 females in the family, 4 with cancer, 1 had ovarian cancer and 1 had ovaries removed. I'm wondering if I don't have hot flashes now, will I have them if I remove the ovaries. Any thoughts? I hate to add problems but the panic keeps on increasing. If you have had an oop I'd love to hear from you! PM me!

Tpralph

CAn anyone tell me about this??  Why would this NOT include IDC?

"[U.S. Boxed Warning]: Tamoxifen use for breast cancer risk reduction in women at high-risk for breast cancer and in women with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is associated with an increased incidence of uterine or endometrial cancers (some fatal). "

I took this from one of my medical resources "uptodate.com"

Artista928

Tamox helps with IDC too. Be careful about reading from other sources.

Tpralph

this is a valid source that my work pays for. I am a NP at a community health centre. I just wonder if you can get ovarian cancer from tamoxifen like it says when it is used  for DCIS and for breast cancer prevention.

I realize it helps with all breast cancers to prevent them as well, just wondered about the black box warning

Grammieshell

I stated the tamoxifen a week ago, so far the only bad things I've noticed is a bit of nasuea and a massive headache that won't go away.

I am hoping those things will go away once my body gets used to the meds.

I have noticed most people talk about being tired, having no energy etc. I'm experiencing the exact opposite, i have tons of energy all day and i sleep much better at night, i hope that doesn't go away.

Anyone else getting the headaches & or energy surge???

💚

Artista928

Boo on the headaches but yay on the energy surge. Hope it lasts. I haven't had much energy since pre-cancer.

brigid_TO

Hi tpralph

On your black box question-I found this...

Tamoxifen Gets "Black Box" Warning

In June of this year, the U. S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and AstraZeneca (the makers of Tamoxifen Nolvadex®) announced that the labelling of tamoxifen would be changed. A "black box" warning about the risk of uterine sarcoma will be added to notify doctors and consumers about serious or life-threatening adverse effects including uterine sarcoma, endometrial cancer, stroke, and pulmonary embolism.

The risk of uterine sarcoma applies to all women who take tamoxifen. Despite this, the new warning is directed solely at women with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) or women who have not had breast cancer but are deemed at high risk. The FDA advisory is not directed to women who have already had breast cancer and who take tamoxifen to reduce the risk of a recurrence. In the opinion of the FDA, the benefits of the drug outweigh its risks for women who have already had breast cancer.

http://www.acsqc.ca/content/tamoxifen-gets-“black-box”-warning

gardengypsy

I am 8 months out from treatment. I usually start feeling burnt out halfway through the day.

mellee

Hey Grammieshell,

I got headaches at first, but they went away after less than a week on tamoxifen, so hopefully yours will too.

gardengypsy

In reference to the black box, I'd like more information. Why in sutu?

lala1

jumpship---I've had a total hysterectomy. Did not have hot flashes before but was not yet in menopause. My gyn warned me about being thrown into surgical menopause which is supposed to be worse than regular. I do have hot flashes now but they aren't that bad for me. Not sure if I would have had them at all if I'd done menopause naturally. Have you gone through menopause yet? If you have then a ooph probably won't bother you. I've heard that HFs tend to be like your mom's. My mom said she's not sure she ever even had a HF. I'm thinking I probably wouldn't have if I hadn't had the surgery. I take Peridin-C for mine and they are few and far between and fairly mild. I'm so glad I did the hysterectomy. My whole body just feels so much better without all the bloating and cramping once a month.

Grammieshell

I'm so glad to hear that, fingers crossed.

breastcanceryogi

I've been on Tamoxifen for just over 3 weeks now and so far, my only SE is a late period with no PMS symptoms (!). I went off birth control pills when I got my ER+ diagnosis, and immediately started getting reliable and terrible cystic acne before my period. I hope Tamoxifen continues to keep the PMS at bay!