Menstruation return after chemo?

kateness

I'm waiting for a call-back from my doctor, in the meantime I thought I'd see who has had similar experiences. It's been almost 15 months since chemo ended, and about 17 months since my cycle stopped. I've had some menopausal symptoms that were to be expected (vaginal soreness, hot flashes) and then some that were worrisome (spotting) that led my doctor to test my blood. FSH levels were such that she declared in the fall that I am in menopause. As a 45 year old woman not interested in conceiving and hoping to only go through menopausal symptoms once, I was pretty happy!

But now I'm bleeding and I'm wondering if it's returned or if something else is going on. It does make sense that it's my cycle returning, I've had bad hormone fluctuations the past month, the hot flashes all but stopped (although it's also winter so there's that), and the last week I had inexplicable heartburn (although that was not a previous symptom typical to me, I hadn't had it like that in 13 years since pregnancy). I had cancer as a younger woman and had my cycle return fairly quickly, but I can't recall if it was different, how long it took, etc.

On the other hand, I've had trouble in the past with a host of issues (cysts, fibroids, dysplasia, etc) that could be benign and would explain why it's not like my cycle used to be. The blood seems thinner, although heavy and constant, and increasing day by day. Then again, I have the fear that there is something more concerning happening, (2 bouts of cancer increases the fear) but I'm trying not to freak out.

Does any of this sound like something you experienced? Do you know if "testing" for menopause is reliable? When your cycle came back was it different than before?

Thanks.