estrogen blood tests

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roseroscoe
roseroscoe Member Posts: 9
edited June 2014 in Managing Side Effects of Breast Cancer and Its Treatment

Hello. I am taking Arimidex (dx May 2007, IDC, 1 cm., grade 3, negative lymph nodes; had lumpectomy, sentinel node biopsy, chemo, radiation; I was 54 and perimenopausal at time of dx and chemo put me in menopause.) I also now occasionally consult a holistic MD (referred by my oncologist) for nutritional advice. I am thinking of adding a supplement with the arimidex  (broccoli seed extract - a natural aromatase inhibitor) and monitoring estradiol/estrone with blood tests after 1 week and 1 month of starting the supplement. If there were a negative interaction between the arimidex and the broccoli seed extract, how accurate would the blood test estrogen results be? I'm not looking to replace arimidex with the supplement, just use it to enhance the AI effect of arimidex (the supplement works in the liver, not in the adrenals like arimidex).  In addition to the feedback from my oncologist, I would like more professional opinions as well.  If my estradion/estrone blood tests remain low, can I trust that the estrogen results are accurate -- or could there still be an interaction between arimidex and the supplement that the blood test wouldn't show?  If so, how much chance is there of that?

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  • DesignerMom
    DesignerMom Member Posts: 1,464
    edited November 2010

    Rose- I'm sort of in the same boat. I am just finishing rads, about 18 more to go. I had lumpectomy, 10 nodes removed, chemo and now rads. I am 54, and have had 2 periods in the last year so my Onc considers me perimenopausal. As I have a non symptomatic blood condition with clotting, we are worried about Tamoxifen. I'm not sure I want to take it anyway, might prefer a more nutritional approach to reduce estrogens. She also thought I should remove my ovaries and then do Arimidex. As I am quite sure I am in or aproaching full blown menopause, I keep asking if they can test my estrogen blood levels. She says they can NOT as they are always shifting during the cycle. I am very frustrated, thinking they may test low, indicating menopause. But she says they could be up the next week and we wouldn't know. There is lots of good information on the "natural girls" thread about DIM and other natural ways to reduce estrogen. Some of those ladies might know about combining it with Arimidex.

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  • duckyb1
    duckyb1 Member Posts: 13,369
    edited June 2011

    roser.................had a estrogen level test done last Thursday ......waiting for the results...............don't know much about the ups and downs that your Dr. is talking about, but there is a estrogen blood level test..................................don't know why she would say there isn't, whether things go up and down or not......................she is wrong, about there not being one.

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  • cycle-path
    cycle-path Member Posts: 1,502
    edited June 2011

    DesignerMom, the determination about whether you are in menopause isn't made by estrogen levels, it's by Folicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH) levels. 

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  • duckyb1
    duckyb1 Member Posts: 13,369
    edited July 2011

    Was told yesterday that all the Estrogen level test does is tell you if your post menopausal...........I said Great I knew th;at 20 years ago..............was having it done to avoid Femara.............got not a damn bit of satisfaction from that............

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