cough and arimidex

mircarol1

Hi, I have taking Arimidex for 13 months. No real problems except last 4 weeks. I have developed a constant dry cough. Had a chest x-ray and no real findings. I'm also going into 4th month of chemo for leukemia. At 1st thought either my breast cancer or leukemia had spread to my lungs but now I feel it could be SE from Arimidex. Spoke to oncologist and he doubts it's a SE from Arimidex, but we all know drs. are last to blame a drug for patient's problems.

Has anyone else had coughing problem after taking Arimidex for year??

Thanks,

Mir

Anonymous

I have the dry cough. My onc said the same thing about not knowing if it is a SE of Arimidex; however he said that for the weight gain, the hot flashes, the dry, creepey skin, the vaginal dryness, the mental fatigue, the bone pain, the muscle pain, the insomnia, the breast pain in my remaining real girl, hair thinning, etc........

I think it is an SE. Let's see if anyone else weighs in!

mircarol1

Hi,

Went to Northwestern Hospital yesterday to check on progress of my chemo for CLL. Voiced concerns about the cough. Supposedly not linked to the leukemia, but doc. didn't know if there was a connection to the arimidex. I went on line and some sites stated that a nagging, lingering cough was SE from Arimidex, but I'd like to hear from any BC survivor if they have had the same experience while taking arimidex.

Thanks,
mir

SueTacoma

I have Arimidex for 6 months now.  Started dry cough 4 months ago.  Getting worse and worse.  Physical exam turned up nothing.  Chest X-Ray clean.  I never though about Arimidex could cause this.  Now I think there is a possibility. 

Sue

mircarol1

Hi Sue,

I went on the AstraZeneca site for Arimidex and even though oncologist is unaware that Arimidex can cause a persistant cough, Astra states that cough is one of the SE. Great, 4 more years of hacking away. Could be worse, but the chemo for the leukemia is wiping me out .

Good luck to all,

Mir

mcgaffey

13 months here. Started little dry cough in August. It is better so may be allergies. Saw an ENT this week for vertigo and he said my sinuses were good. Bit of pain in sinuses as well. This all started in August when we have extreme dusty heat here. So there may be no connection between the one and the other. From my perspective now, there is a connection with the way my skin is now and many other things. The pill is in play with our whole system. I am being treated for hypothyrodism. I have learned that having one thing out of balance can set many things out of balance.

mircarol1

Hi ,

For those of you that did have a badannoying cough that kept you up at night, what if anything did your Dr. prescribe??? Mine is not too eager to suggest any remedy to the problem.

Thanks

Anonymous

My doc didn't prescribe anything, but suggested Zicam for coughs. It is a small spray bottle that fits in my purse nicely. A couple of small sprays usually does the trick! I swear by it and have given it as a "gift" before to other sufferers.

peeps1111

Yes,, a cough is one of the side effects.  Go to askapatient.com and read the ratings for Arimidex.  You will find that many people have the cough.  What a terrible drug, I hope they come up with something better.  My dr. suggested this when it's time for hormone therapy and I was horrified when I read what those people had to say.  My friend who is on it said her only side effect was slight ankle pain in the morning but many women are debilitated by this drug.

Peeps

mickey53

I have been on Arimidex since Jan 2007 and now I can add this to my list of side effects.  I have had a dry cough for quite a while and never thought about the Arimidex.  My doc just shrugged her shoulders when I mentioned it during my list of ailments.  Thanks for giving me the answer.

Judy_Mc

I was on Arimidex for 5 years and I also had the cough for about 1 1/2 to 2 years but eventually it went away.It started after I was on the Arimidex for about 1 year. My Dr gave me a script for some cough medicine that worked great.It was called Tussionex and I could only take it when I went to bed at night but that was when the cough got worse.

I swear I had just about every SE I could possibly have but I am really glad I toughed it out and stayed on the AI for my 5 years.It is amazing though that as soon as I stopped taking it all the SE went away. I now feel better than I have felt in years.

wishiwere

Judy!  Thank you soooooooooooooooo much for that news!  On other threads, that's been a big concern as to whether the SE's would go away after treatment in 5 years!  Can I ask you, did you have hair thinning and if so, has your hair come back thicker now?  Did you have Vaginal problems that are now better?  What about the bones and such?  Did you have loss of bone with it? Has that improved?  So many questions!  How long have you been off it now? 

skylark1730

HI Judy,

Yes, I have had a most persistent cough for the past year at least.  I have been taking Arimidex for two years.  The cough is not always a dry cough as there is also some congestion. 

Thank you for your posting.  I'm sorry to hear about your side effects but also reassured that I am not the only one with side effects such as cough.

skylark1730

ILMBeaches

I started benicar (HBP med) a few months after starting arimidex and had developed a cough so was not sure which pill was causing it.  Also had chest Xray.  I stopped benicar a few months ago and the hacking is gone but I believe some of the sides for arimidex may be coughing.

 By the way, my high blood pressure is from arimidex. Its really the only SE I have experienced.  Arimidex is a wonderful drug. I'm on it almost 4 years.

skylark1730

Hi Judy,You mentioned all the SE you had while on Arimidex.  Did you have insomnia and frequent urination?  These two are the worst SE I have had, to the point where at times it feels like my bladder will burst!

I'm just wondering if others are having these similar SE.

Thanks so much and good luck to you in the future.

Dana - San Francisco

lexie2002

Hi Judy, I started taking Arimidex last March (6 months ago).... I was scared to start it. I just started coughing about a month ago.

I was told if you get side effects right off the bat that those are the SE that would affect you while on the drug. From what I've been reading

it sounds as if SE could just keep coming! Mostly I've been going crazy with terrible sweating and joint pain. Now I have this cough, I have

had it checked out.... I do have some phlegm but really don't cough up anything. I was thinking it could be the drug but it didn't start til after

being on it for 5 months. I am so darn confused

lexie2002

Hi Judy,  Did you have extreme hot flashes?  I start sweating no matter what the temperature is. My knees are killing me too. I started

coughing recently also.  I hope I can be like you and tough this out  Did the Arimidex affect your hair? Mine is still growing in after the

chemo and I sure would hate to have it stop the process. Any information you can give me would be so appreciated. Thanks

lindab0105

I would be interested in hearing an update from those of you who reported a cough potentially associated with Arimidex. I started taking it last October and have just started experiencing a dry cough - only during the day - in the past month. Oncologist and ENT can't see any problems, but it's annoying and a little scary. I've also started experiencing more intermittent "discomfort" on the affected side (some minor throbbing, sensitivity on the underlying chest wall and some tightness in the area of the arm where the lymph nodes were removed (perhaps related to surgery or radiation treatment, didn't have chemo??). Have had two clean 3D mammos, and a clean bone scan very recently. The cough is worrying, but it seems I'm not alone in experiencing this. If you've had this, did it persist and for how long?

Other than this my SE's have been typical - already had hot flashes, now they are just a bit stronger. Skin and hair are very dry. I was having difficulty sleeping due to night sweats (sleep 2 hours, awake an hour...repeat), but found a great mild anti-anxiety med that has been a godsend - Temazepam. I take it at bedtime and now get vastly improved sleep and fewer night sweats.

Moderators

Hi linda and welcome to Breastcancer.org!

This thread has been quiet for quite a while, so it might not get the amount of response you're hoping for. You may want to start a new thread with a similar topic to help gain some attention from other members who can help!

We hope this helps and we hope you find relief soon. Looking forward to hearing more from you. Thanks for posting!

--The Mods

lexie2002

Hi Burns,

I've been on Arimidex for quite some time now... I can't remember how long at the moment, 2 to 3 yrs??

I saw you mentioned hairloss, are you experiencing that. I'm going so bald on top now and it's maddening

I deal with a lot of side effects but this is the one that makes me remember what I use to look like during my treatments.

Thanks,

Lexie

dsodasso

I also started Anastrazole last October and just started with this annoying dry cough (like a tickle from my lungs)about a month ago. Only bothers me occasionally during the day. I thought maybe cancer went to my lungs, but good to hear it might only be a side effect of arimidex. I also have joint pain, insomnia, and thinning hair. I am always tired. I already had bladder problems, so think that is due more to age and a lot of pregnancies. Ankles hurt, and sometimes a sharp pain and I can't walk for a few minutes. Hot flashes too. but no sweating....just feeling warm or hot for 5-15 minutes at a time. I have never been one who sweats alot. Not even during exercise. My skin is pretty good, but I use Josie Maran whipped body butter every day and my skin is pretty smooth and soft. I am noticing weight gain also.

Janett2014

Just saw this thread. I've been on Anastrozole (Teva brand) for 2 years and 7 months. I never thought to associate my persistent cough with this med! Of course I can't remember exactly when the cough started, but I think the timing is correct.

april25

Well... I've been on Anastrozole (Accord) since mid- 2015... I'm JUST experiencing the cough now-- mid 2018...

I've had a cough before from Lisinopril (Ace-inhibitor for hbp)... so I thought it might be from my current hbp med, Metroprolol, which CAN cause coughs, but supposedly it's super rare compared to other hbp meds. I tried halving the dose myself, just to see... but it didn't seem to lessen the cough. I tried to lessen the only new med I was taking: Lexapro (anti-depressant), and that didn't seem to affect the cough, so I just searched for coughs and anastrozole and found this thread.

It looks to be a bit old, though. Anyone else been getting a dry cough? --It really could be any number of meds, unfortunately... but I'm beginning to suspect this one. i haven't tried to lay off to see if it makes a difference because, you know, I'd rather keep taking it.

Anyone know if using the brand name helps? Or using anastrolzole made by Teva?

I haven't been experiencing terrible side effects from anastrozole so far. Some hot-flashes, but not often, or bad. No aches. *sigh*

Although I'm on generic Fosamax from signs of osteopenia. Apparently that can cause a cough... Hmmm!