21 pg/mL Estrogen level while on Aromasin + lupron, too high?

stephilosphy00

Hi ladies, I have been on lupron for 1.5 years and Aromasin for 8 months. My estrogen level was 17 when started Aromasin, now it is 21! I freaked out because I know the preferred estrogen level should be < 10. I am afraid Aromasin is less effective when estrogen is not low enough. Any thoughts? Thanks!

katcar0001

Goodness, you are so very young :-(. Have you discussed this with your onc? I am 54, and yet my onc was worried that I might not be post-menopausal because my blood tests while I was on Tamoxifen showed high estradiol levels; however, a recent blood test confirmed that indeed I am at <10 pg/ml.

Since you have been on ovarian suppression with Aromasin, I would think your onc would want to see lower levels of estradiol. It is true that the AIs can have a rebound effect if the estrogen is not low enough.

I don't know your history, but is there a reason you cannot go back on Tamoxifen? Also, did your onc ever mention removing your ovaries? That is a really tough decision at your age and if you want children, but it is an alternative. I think it is really good that you did chemo including Xeloda and radiation as well. But since your tumor was 100% ER/PR positive, certainly the anti-hormonals are key for you to prevent a recurrence.

Kathleen26

I agree that you need to get your MO's attention on this. If the Lupron is not getting your estadiol low enough to allow the Aromasin to do what it's supposed to do, you might be better off on Tamoxifen, IMHO. You need to make noise about this.

stephilosphy00

Thank you ladies! I am just very confused that some websites even like BCO here say <30 of Estradiol level is considered at menopausal level.

stephilosphy00

I paid out of pocket to have a sensitive estradiol test last week, which came back at 2.6pg/ml, I am very happy about it!