Testosterone Pellets

stayinhappy

I have just had testosterone pellets inserted for treatment of hot flashes, weight gain, foggy brain, etc. You can read about them at hormonebalance.org. Has anyone else tried this? Had success? Failure? I had chemo and I am on Tamoxifen.

Rdrunner

i dont know anything about them but i do know that excess testosterone is converted into estrogen in the body which is why body builders take tamoxifen at the end of a cycle. not sure if i would willing increase testosterone but as i said i havent researched it.

Momine

Stayinhappy, is your onc OK with that? I am thinking it should be fine as long as you are on tamox, but I don't actually know.

We had a good discussion on another thread about various hormone questions, and I think I probably produce quite a bit of testosterone naturally. It is probably the reason I have not had severe symptoms from menopause.

Best of luck with getting some relief.

BayouBabe

I was just prescribed a testosterone cream to help with libido issues. There is a study out there, though only in early stages, that shows women who had testosterone and Arimidex had fewer cases of recurrence and no side effects from the Arimidex.

abigail48

I take a teaspoon of bee-pollen each morning in my oatmeal

stayinhappy

My Onc approved the treatment because I am taking Tamoxifen. The pellets are not metabolized the way an oral supplement would be, and the pellets provide a consistent level vs. use of the cream. The website hormonebalance.org provides information on this treatment.

Anonymous

I'm interested in this, but wonder how to approach my oncologist with the info. It also looks to be pretty expensive. Does insurance pay for it?

gemini4

This definitely sounds interesting. I wonder, though, might the supplemental testosterone cause things like hair loss and facial hair?

BayouBabe

These are listed as side effects on my compounded cream. I am definitely keeping a close eye on things.

gemini4

kayb, I'm sorry to hear your migraines are more frequent. I've had hormonal migraines for decades and get good relief with imitrex (sumatriptan) intranasal. Do you think you could take this? Certainly a cure for the cause (hormone imbalance) would be ideal, but at least if you could get some relief...

gemini4

wow, that sounds awful. Though mine can last for days(and I used to have to tough them out before I had imitrex) ... I might have traded for a five-hour bout even with vomiting versus two or three days of feeling like I got kicked in the head by a mule! I especially like the intranasal imitrex (I call it a "blast") because my migraines seem to originate in the sinus area, so it feels like I'm "blasting" right at the source. I tried the oral imitrex version and didn't find it as effective. Usually a single "blast" takes care of the headache within thirty minutes.

Hopefully you'll tolerate imitrex better than maxalt. I believe I tried maxalt maybe 20 years ago, and it didn't help. Imitrex is now available as generic sumatriptan so it's not so expensive now.

gemini4

Keep me posted on your progress! :-)

stayinhappy

So far, the results have been very good for me!! The hot flashes have finally stopped, almost altogether. I have had a few, but they were nothing compared to what I was experiencing before. I have noticed a few instances of rapid heart beat, but again, much less severe. Definately worth a try. I am much much better! I'll report again in a weeks. I sure hope the good results are lasting.

Sympton (scale of 1-10) before/after

Hot flahses 10/2

Sweats 10/2

Heart palpitations 9/1

Focus (lack of) 8/5

Memory 8/6

Energy level 8/4

Weight 9/9 (no change)

Loss of libido 8/8 (no change)

stayinhappy

BayouBabe - I tried the cream, but it didn't work for me. I was told that the pellets have better absorbtion, and provide more consistent levels. For me, the pellets worked, while the cream didn't. But goodness, we are all so different. Too bad the fixes are not one-size-fits-all.

stayinhappy

claireinaz

Insurance covered the cost of the pellets, and I had to pay for the insertion (around $135 was my share, but I am sure this will vary). I will have to repeat the procedure every 4 months or so.

stayinhappy

Just an update. It's been about three months now, and the hotflashes are slowly coming back. This coincides with the timeline I was given, so I will have my levels tested and have new pellets inserted. So, this tells me the pellets do work. I just cannot tell you how much better I feel without those gosh awful hot flash heart racing sweaty episodes. I have also had better energy, and so I have been exercising more.

BayouBabe

Did you notice any improvement in libido with them?

stayinhappy

BB, Minimal, I'd say. 

BayouBabe

I was hoping.  The search continues.

DianeY

I am considering taking the arimidex/testosterone pellet.  The Glaser study (mid way result) indicates no increase in estrogen from the testosterone, major decrease in arimidex SE's as well as a reduction in recurrence.  My MO is "neutral" as there haven't been additional studies to corroborate these findings.......I don't know where to start looking for who will administer the pellets in my area.  Since the testosterone is a compound formula, I will start with my Compound pharmacy.  I also want to contact doctors who have supported this treatment to see what their experience has been with their patients......aside from the study.  I'm in CA.

stayinhappy

I had a second insertion about a month ago, and can report that this treatment continues to work well for my hot flashes and fatigue.I actually went about 3 weeks too long waiting on the insertion due to some scheduling issues.During that time, the hot flashes returned with their past vengeance. The 2nd treatment took about 2 weeks (for the testosterone levels to rise). But, after a couple of weeks, the hot flashes subsided again. Thankful for this treatment option!

stayinhappy

BayouBabe, I have recently begun using an estriol vaginal cream that has helped so much with libido and response.  My oncologist issued a prescription for a cream that is compounded for me.  

BayouBabe

Is it the scream cream mentioned in another thread or something different?  My search continues - I miss the old me.