FEMARA

Kicks

I have been on Femara/letrozole for 5+ yrs and have had no nausea issues.

Tomboy

I did, Dventi. In the last few weeks of taking it. I stopped taking it on valentines day. By the first day of spring, I noticed I could breathe more easily, and the nausea went away. Sadly, the joint pain did not... On cinco de mayo, I started tamoxifen again... so i will move along, and say good by to my Fem.sisters...

shelleym1

I got the generic Femara made by Teva. Is that good or bad?

lassie11

Neither good nor bad - they all have the same basic ingredients and the occasional person has some reaction to slightly different fillers.

 

Snowgirl63

Thank you Tammy for your reply...I'm just so sore all over and so fatigued and I can't imagine it letting up. So thank you for that Hope.

Hugs , Teresa

Tammy_M43

Tomboy, best wishes for your journey with Tamoxifen!

shelleym1

how long do we try this stuff until we give up because of the side effects

SchoolCounselor

Shelly. I hear you but despite all the side effects I'm going through, and there are many, I'm in it for the long haul. I recognize that it is protecting me from a reoccurrence. So here I am.

shelleym1

I'm just afraid of losing my quality of life. I still want to be able to work and go out and enjoy things. Some of the side effects are scary.

zjrosenthal

Shelly I am more afraid of losing my life than losing my quality of life. For me the sides are manageable. Love, Jean

cp418

zjrosenthal - I feel exactly as you do. The more I walk and physically keep active the better I feel. I have had osteopenia issues so am getting Zometa twice per year now.

farmerlucy

Shelly - what side effects are you experiencing?

shelleym1

Farmerlucy, none yet. They just started me on Lupron last week. I have to be in menopause before I can start Femara but I have the prescription filled. I've just heard a lot of bad things and I'm scared.

windingshores

I have been on Femara now for a few weeks, after having some difficulty getting on. Due to info on the forum here, I have been walking every evening for an hour or so. Yesterday I drove a lot and did not walk, and today is the first day I have joint pain. As it happens, I went to my rheumatologist today (for mild lupus that I have had for years) and she made the distinction between joint pain from AI's, which is not progressive, and rheumatoid arthritis and other inflammatory, autoimmune, and progressive conditions. My knees, ankles and hips hurt today but they are not red and swollen. I took the stairs at the doctors and will resume walking tonight. I also think swimming or warm pool therapy might help.

Don't be scared. Many women I know do fine with these meds, but they are not online at all

BlownOffCourse

Just thought I'd add my experience with Femara. I've been taking it since October and have had very few issues. Some mild hot flashes at the beginning, which were more of a tingly feeling than actually "hot" feeling, but those are gone now. Some mild joint pain, but I had some of that before treatment and I carry around an extra 50 pounds , so that's not all from the Femara. No other side effects to speak of.

farmerlucy

Shelley - I am three weeks post ooph and doing great. I did have to double my Effexor to 75 mg because the hot flashes were an inferno! I know the Effexor is making me a bit dizzy but I can't tell anything different re: Femara. Hang in there, we're walking alongside you.

texas94

rozem, robinblessed, SchoolCounselor & Tammy- Thanks for the responses! I'm happy to report 3 weeks into taking a full dose of Femara (generic) each night, I'm having very little joint pain and swelling. The lyphedema I was having has also improved, though I think that's just coincidence. I began using 5lb weights to do some very minor arm exercises, because my PT says working with weights helps immensely. I also added a Glucosamine/Chond/MSM supplement, and it works wonders! I felt relief after 2 pills. Seriously. I don't remember the last time I took something and had quick relief. I felt I had about 50% improvement fairly quickly. Here's what I'm taking if you'd like to try it: Amazon- NOW Foods Glucosamine 1.1g, Chondroitin 1.2g, with MSM 300mg, 180 Capsules

Hopefully I'll continue to improve and feel good. Now on to trying to fix the muscle spasms all over my radiated side so I can finally heal and be done! Ugh- does it ever end?

Nash54

Hi Shelley.....I'm not having any side effects from Femara...hopefully you won't either.

For those of you experiencing hot flashes look up the use of magnesium. I haven't had any hot flashes since starting Femara and I was taking magnesium before I started and continue to do so.

Best of luck.

Rose63

Hi Ladies. Thought I'd share my experience too. I was on Tamoxifen for 2 years, but my MO wanted to switch me to Femara. I was very nervous about the switch. My side effects with Tamoxifen were really not too bad (a bit of ankle swelling, some not-to-bad joint stiffness and muscle cramping). And I was used to them. But she really felt I should switch if possible, and said I could go back to Tamoxifen if it didn't work out for me. Well I'm almost 3 weeks in now on the Teva generic. Few hot flashes the first couple of days, but that stopped. Quite a bit more joint/bone pain the first week to ten days. I was thinking I might not last. But now the pain and stiffness seems to not be as bad, and it comes and goes. If this is it, I'll be ok with Femara.

Nash54, I've been taking Magnesium for a couple of years because it really helped reduce my muscle spasms on Tamoxifen a lot. My MO said to stay on it with the Femara too, because it will help with the bone pain and also keeps you 'regular'. Didn't know it was also helping with hot flashes! Sounds like a wonder pill!

glowcat

Robinee

Sorry I haven't logged on on in a long time. Joico Whipped Foam is a mouse that you rub on before drying hair. The when the hair is dry I style it with a little more and it dries naturally. After chemo, rad & Herceptin I began Femara. Aches, muscle pains, hair loss, sleeplessness all are attributed to Femara. It's like a poison pill that helps keep the big C away (hopefully). We really have no choice but to take these meds and hope for the best. Mine was invasive ductal BC and I had a lumpectomy I really have nothing good to say about Femara but that's the breaks and God will see us through this.

Try the whipped foam, you really won't need a conditioner. I use Mane n Tail shampoo that seems to be making my hair grow faster. I know it sounds weird but it really does make your hair grow. I'm not saying that it stops hair loss but give it a try.

Good luck and all the best wishes to you.

glowcat

Hi all,

Just want to say that most of these drugs cause side effects but we have no choice. It sucks. WE just have to grin and bare it. If we don't take them we would have to suffer the consequences and I don't think there is one of us that wants to go through lumpectomies and chemo, and radiation, and Herceptin.

Let's look at the bright side, we are ALIVE!

Snowgirl63

Hello,

I just got magnesium today. Hopefully that will help with the bone pain.

windingshores

I am trying to think of the hot flashes as evidence it is working, and making things too hot for my cancer to handle

rozem

I had a really really tough time on Femara - and I was already in menopause due to Lupron shots.  Im wondering if its worse on younger women since we may still have more estrogen circulating and therefore this sucks up any that is left after the ovaries are shut down?  Im 46, 42 when diagnosed.  I have been in forced meno for almost 3.5 years and I could not tolerate the AI's and im no wimp.  I tried Aromasin first and had vertigo, couldn't drive.  Ditched that and started Femara.  I could barely function with how bad my bone and joint pain was and not to mention the fatigue and brain fog.  It is so true that this drug hits us all so differently.  I really wish it wasn't so bad because I know there is a benefit to tamox.  Im back on tam and OS - I will try it again at some point as I will be on some type of hormone therapy for 10 years!

Rose63

Rozem, don't think anyone here thinks you're a wimp! This stuff is wicked. It hits everyone different. Many ladies have to switch or discontinue the effects are so bad. I am still nervous my pain may get to be too much. But for now, for me, it's ok. Want to get it out that sometimes it is manageable so newbies might be more willing to at least try. So you can handle the Tamox ok then?

Nash54

rozem....I do believe its harder on younger women. I went thru menopause at 43 and experienced alot of the SE's that people have reported on Femara. I was 59 at DX and Femara has not been hard for me so far. Don't know if that's the case for other older women but it has been for me. Hang in there...hope your SE's get better.

rozem

Rose63 and Nash54  thank you so much for your encouraging words...I feel like a AI flunkie.  Rose yes I can handle the tamox just fine.  I didn't realize that until the switch.  Yes I have some bone pain and fatigue but nothing like the AIs - I feel so much better already 1wk off everything and 1 wk back on tamox.  I will attempt again but since I am probably going to be on something for 10 years I will wait until Im 5 years with tam and then switch to an AI - hopefully by then I will be able to manage it

lifelover

I'm now 54 years old and took tamoxifen for almost 4 years (a few vacations from it though). I'm now in menopause (according to my blood work) and I've been taking Femara for 2 weeks and so far no side effects. Thanks for the magnesium suggestion - I'll start it today. My doctor prescribed calcium and vitamin D pills.

Snowgirl63

Oh my gosh I had o save that one cause that was funny! I'm so happy to see the humour. It's not like I see the humour in any of this all the time but sometimes a real funny thing happens to me and I sit want to cry... Call me weird! Just wondering if anyone gets really itchy and hour after taking letrozole my abdominal skins becomes very itchy I guess cause I have a bit o a tummy and the fat cell have the estrogen but then I start to wonder if I should have Lopo auction cause this pouch of fat dosnt seem to go anywhere even if I lose weight.

Teresa

Snowgirl63

Hi Shelly,

My quality has changed too but I think a lot has to do with side effects from the radiation as well and not just the meds so I'm going to try and wait it out the 4 months they said the fatigue and aching and hope for less of a reaction. I get the Lupron shots as well and the gynecologist suggested that I may have less symptoms if i get the shots once a month rather than every three.. I'm getting my ovaries removed so I don't have to have the injections and the extra side effects that goes along with that. Now to just lose some body fat so that I'm producing less eateogen.

I started yesterday with Natures Made 400mg gel capsules of magnesium so I know that has worked in the past for my aching as so hoping for the same as well as all the other benefits of magnesium.

Teresa