FEMARA

Hi Cher56: my hair loss could be caused by so many things.....not just Letrozole...

After my diagnosis, Inwent vegetarian over night, no dairy, went quite anal actually....

Lots of anxiety and fear, loss of appetite, in other words, the works. I am now on an

Anti-anxiety med plus my old anti-depressant (Zoloft) I was on the first time I went through menopause. Was also told I have a zinc deficiency......so, who knows......could be any of these things causing my hair loss.

Hi bevg49.......My MO says that L causes thinning....many women here take large doses of Biotin...up to 800......I was taking 600 and my Dermatologist told me to stop as the body cannot absorb that amount. She has me taking 100 three times a day plus watching my zinc as the blood work came back say if I was low. Perhaps other ladies will come on to give you their opinion. Good luck with it as I know it's frustrating....I have been wearing a straw hat all summer as you can see right through to my scalp.

That's my question too. I wish some ladies would post to answer that question, but they probably have all moved on by now. I will try to do some research and see what I come up with.

High chrissyb.....thanks for the response....it seems unfair because I am 65 and have gone through menopause before and lost a lot of hair then and here I go once more.

May have to spend the rest of my life wearing hats😱

I asked my Rad Onc about biotin & he said he did not want me to start anything new until I was finished rad treatments. 

Yeah Isabelle, I was told the same .

Ginger - they started me on tamoxifen about 2 months after my mastectomy.  I took it for about 6 months, but the SE's were far too much for me, so they moved me to letrozole - which I started about a year after my diagnosis.  I've been on it for 10 months now.  My worst SE is that I need a lot of sleep - instead of the 8 hours a night I used to require, I do best with about 11 - then I actually have some energy for the 13 hours I'm awake... 

At first my MO said she was going to include the 6 mos of tamoxifen in figuring my 5 years of hormone therapy AND she was going to let me take a month "vacation" each year from the therapy, but she's changed her tune now. Apparently there was a study done of men with prostrate cancer that showed markedly better results for the men who did not take therapy "vacations", so I guess I'll be on the letrozole for another 4 years and 2 mos with no break.

I was prescribed Femara 3 weeks ago.  Within 2 weeks both my hair texture and volume changed.  It felt like straw. It has definitely thinned out in the last 3 weeks.   I stopped taking Femera this past Sunday and saw my oncologist on Wednesday.  Since stopping femara the texture of my hair has definitely improved.  My Oncologist says that the Femara would not have done this this quickly and must be something else going on.  I have gone back to Tamoxifen for the next six months.  Has anyone else experienced the change in their hair that quickly after starting Femara?

Thanks Scottiee1, I hear you with regards to hair loss and what the alternative is.  The logical part of me says it is only hair but it is the emotional part that jumps in.  My onc feels that for the time being continuing on the tamoxifen will be okay and we will revist the Femara in 6 months. 

Friday was my last Femara, after 5 years, the onc said to discontinue, I feel happy and also very scared of a recurrence. I am wondering if my hair will start to grow in thicker and I wont have so much foot pain. Atleast since I had side effects, I knew Femara was working. Do I now have to limit my estrogen since I am no longer on Femara? I had an ooph 5 years ago. I am so scared that now I have no defense!!!

ihopeg-I get the fear, but YIPEE GIRL!  NO MORE PILL!  I've got 2 years, 1 month & 11 days!!

Susannah,

I take my letrozole in the evening along with my sleeping pill, amitriptyline, since I had trouble sleeping when I took it in the am. I think I switched from am to pm after I had been taking it about a month.

I've been on it since January 20 and I do get some minor aches and pains but it's all good.

Hope it gets better for you,

LaDonna

I also take it in the evening with no sleep issues.

OMG I'm for. Glasgow but my Father's oldest brother lived most of his life running a sheep farm in Inverness (Lairg). I used to spend all my summers up there as a child.

We should PM each other, we have similar dx and perhaps get to know each other better.

I switched to nights after 3 months-best thing I could've done I think