I am not a candidate for Tamoxifen due to the side effects

debmary1

I am Stage 1 and have acute closed angle glaucoma and am not a candidate for Tamoxifen. The doctor said there is no other drugs to help with pre menopause. My cancer is estrogen positive. I've had radiation only and now I feel helpless since I cant take Tamoxifen.. Any one else unable to take hormonal therapy and if so what did you do?

debiann

Are you also unable to take any of the Aromatase Inhibitors? They are for post menopausal women and work differently than Tamoxifen, perhaps that is an option.

ksusan

Regular exercise seems to decrease recurrence.

Moderators

Hi debmary1 and welcome to Breastcancer.org!

Thank you for posting -- we're all here to help as much as we can. As debiann mentioned, perhaps the aromatase inhibitors would be an option for you? You can read about them on the main Breastcancer.org site's section on Aromatase Inhibitors, and talk to your doctor about the best course of action.

We hope this helps. Please let us know what you and your doctor decide!

--The Mods

barbe1958

If you are post-menopausal your oncologist shouldn't be putting you on Tamoxifen anyway. That's for pre-menopausal women. Those of us who are post take an Aromatase Inhibitor like Aromasin or Arimidex. Have a good chat with your oncologist and possibly ask for a second opinion if they truly feel you need to be on something.

I went 8 years without taking anything or having rads. Surgery only.

ShetlandPony

Just to clarify, tamoxifen can be used by both pre- and postmenopausal women. Aromatase inhibitors can only be used by women who are postmenopausal, either naturally or medically (with ovarian suppression or removal).

barbe1958

Thanks Shetland, I guess my info is out of date.

ShetlandPony

There's so much to know, we have to work as a team, right?

debmary1

I am premenopausal. Unfortunately, I would have a much better choice if I was post..

debmary1

ksusan, That's all I see my options being, exercise and a good diet.

debmary1

Thank you all, Unfortunately I am pre menopause and seems not many options out there for me.. I thought they would have other drugs for pre since Im sure many can not take Tamoxifen due to to the many side effects and my estrogen levels are still very high, so I'm worried.. Thank you so much and Ill keep you posted..

debmary1

I just realize I put post instead of pre. I have corrected it.. So sorry for the misunderstanding.

Irish65

If the AIs are not a problem with the glaucoma they can suppress your ovaries with Lupron or Zoladex so you could take an AI. I opted for this bc I'm not a fan of tamoxifen.

Irish65

If the AIs are not a problem with the glaucoma they can suppress your ovaries with Lupron or Zoladex so you could take an AI. I opted for this bc I'm not a fan of tamoxifen.

debmary1

Thank you Irish65 . I will definitely look into those!

meg1156

I am postmenopausal and had ER and PR first stage.I have an ileostomy and found arimidex caused extreme diahrhea. I expect that tamoxifen may cause the same thing. Does any source produce statistics of not using either and what the percentage of recurrent stage one is? Is there an ileostomate out there with advice? Thank you.

nem126

It does stink that tamoxifen is the only drug for younger patients. I'm 32. I'm assuming they'll be putting me on tamoxifen when I'm done with radiation. I am switching from birth control pills to the non hormonal IUD paragard in the next few months. So, at least I'll have less estrogen that way.

Fearless59

Barb1958,

Great job going 8 years without drugs etc! Any special lifestyle pro-survival healthy habits that you think helped you stave it off?

Also, I am thinking for us er/pr+ gals, being close to one's ideal body weight should help keep the estrogen manageable. Hate to be too prying, but were you ideal weight, or over? I am about 40 lbs overweight and weighing my treatment options for best long term survival.

Thanks.

Fearless59

Is there a way to test our hormone levels at home?