zometa

i am post menopausal & i know that bone density @ my age is an issue in general but there are natural supplements that can be taken if this becomes an issue for me...i will have the bone density test @  my next Herceptin appt. My Onc had not disussed this with me previously & I just don't want to be pushed into the latest drug so they can generate their "statistics" . 

jumping on late I just had my first zometa infusion on wed.  My DEXA showed a Tscore of -1.6 in my hip so I have osteopenia not osteoporosis. My MO said I WILL GET OSTEOPOROSIS if I stay on the Aromasin for several years.  I have a terrible FH of osteoporosis with my mother breaking both hips, at least 5 vertebrae as well as her pelvis. My 70 yo sister also has osteoporosis but has been treated and no fxs.  

I brought up the zometa after reading the San Antonio breast conference article. My MO had actually been there   He has researched it more and feels it is a good thing to do.  Not the standard of care but like someone earlier said may become  one. 

My problem is my insurance has refused to cover it as it is not an FDA approved use! Bullcrap. They will pay if you already have mets but not to prevent them.

They did get reclast (5mg dose where as zometa is 4 mg of the same med) but only one dose per 2 years.  I got 4 mg of "reclast". Not sure if they will pay for it or not since it was not the whole 5 mg.  My MO is going to try to fight for it but if not I feel strongly enough I will pay out of pocket for it every 6 months for 2-3 years. 

Luckily I hydrated like crazy before, 60+ oz fluid the morning before the 11 AM infusion and at least that much after it. No flu like symptoms, fevers or significant bone pain.  Just the normal achiness getting out of bed first thing that I attribute to the aromasin. 

Sorry for being so long winded.  Sounds like the rest of you got your insurance to cover  it . 

i was able to get them to schedule a bone density test first - I suppose they will recommend I take it anyway - preventative & all that...

thanks for the heads up about hydration...i have started taking Glucosamine MSM to try & help with the joint pain from both meds...already have arthritis in knees, feet & lower back  and Nueropathy so sometimes it's hard to tell what pain is "new" 

Crazywrabbit,  My MO is recommending Zometa infusions in September, when I'm finished with rads and can have my follow up bone density.  The one from two years ago shows that I'm osteopencic and we expect that this bone density will be worse this time after 5 months of chemo.  The MO is hoping to use the new bone density results to bolster the pre authorization insurance request she will submit.  She thinks that the osteopenia will mean that they will cover one infusion a year, but not the second one.  She said that "it is not that expensive," but I have no idea of the cost.  Since you've had your first infusion, do you know how much it costs out of pocket?  If it's not totally crazy, I will definitely do this as it adds 3% to non recurrence for my aggressive triple negative, plus it's beneficial for my bones.  My last bone density shows T Scores of -2.0 AP spine, -1.3 Femoral Neck, and -1.7 Total Hip.  Honestly I have no real idea of how bad those scores are, if it was ever explained to me at the time.

MomMom. Normal Tscore for bone is +1 to -1

          Osteopenia is <-1 to -2.5,   Osteoporosis  is < -2.5 

 osteopenia is thinning of bones but before frank osteoporosis, you are still at increased risk of fracture with the -penia but not a high as. Full blown -porosis.  What ever your lowest TScore is determine the dx. 

No idea the price of zometa and of course the price of the infusion. Guess I will find out in a couple of weeks.  

Well today I had my 7th or 8th Zometa infussion (who's counting?) and thankfully I feel fine , just a little heart burn, I hope those of you that decide to go for this treatment find it as easy as I have, however, everyone is different, but I still wish the best for you all.

Aurora

Hi Peacestremgth - Does your insurance cover the Zometa?  Thanks!

peacestrength, you are lucky my insurance, Blue Cross, denied zometa since I did not have bone mets, the whole idea is to prevent them as well as protect the bones from the AIs osteoporosis effect. I have to pay out of pocket for mine. I will find out soon how much my first infusion last Wed will cost me. At least I did not have any side effects from it. I hydrated like crazy before and after.

Crazyrabbit, 

I asked MO for it, she said no to begin with, not standard of care ( yet ), and she said my insurance would not pay. I insisted that I wanted it. She ordered & my insurance did pay. 

Next year it will be more expensive as I will not have my deductible paid. 

I did feel very tired & achy for 2-3 days, but nothing compared to all the other tortuous treatments. 

MomMom. My BC is a self funded plan, administer by BC, for the health system I work for.  I have to wait 5 more years for Medicare, if it is still there by then and still covering cancer treatment. 

Crazywrabbit,  My husband & I are both retired feds, so generally our BC has good coverage, although since we are Medicare as primary, we see from the statements that Medicare is footing the lion's share of the payments.  I'm hoping it will still be around forever!  We are both SO grateful for it.

keepthefaith, I've been to an orthopedic surgeon. Last year I broke my right leg femur, but when he opened me up he found bone mets. If there is no cancer in the bones I would trust the orthopedic MD but with the cancer anything that shows on the x-rays is not clear if it's arthritis, osteoneopenia, osteoroporosis or the cancer so I trust my oncologist more. Zometa is for bone strenghtening and in some studies it has been shown to prevent mets. I take zometga once a month and have no se's but everyone is different. Good luck!

Aurora

I have been on Arimadex, Femara and now Aromasin, the latter with the fewest side effects for me. We all respond so differently.

I will be done with the 5 years next April. I have lost additional 9% bone since my last DEXA scan (2 years ago) still in osteopenia territory but don't want that to go any further. Zometa infusion is scheduled this coming Wednesday, the 6th of August. I, too was very hesitant to go for it, but I don't want to have more bone loss. I had a patient tell me about her severe side effects a day or so before my doc gave me the recommendation so, just at the wrong time.

 I heard about the keeping hydrated and taking anti inflammatory before and after treatment. I am scheduled to work the next day so hopefully no side effects. 

I am checking to see if any of the discount Zometa coupons I found on line will help with the costs. I have a high deductible. Check them out to see if your pharmacy will honor any for you- I was able to print out 3.

GoodRX.com has discount coupons but my infusion center does not allow you out to bring in outside medications. 

I had no side effects to the zometa I got last week. I drank 2- 20 oz glasses of water and 2 cups of coffee over the 2-3  hours before and  lots the day afterwards afterwards.  I popped a few advils at bedtime, just in case, but probably did not need them. 

Hydrate well and good luck. 

To all those considering Zometa and concerned about the possible out-of-pocket cost should your insurance not cover two infusions a year.  I recently had a follow up bone density.  It was two years since my last one.  One # went up a tick and the other two #s went down!  I was pretty amazed at that, as I expected chemo to weaken my bones.  However, I'm still classified as osteopenic so I'm hoping that my insurance will cover at least one of the two Zometa infusions per year.  Just heard from my MO's office and the total charge for one Zometa infusion is only $340! Not that $340 isn't a chunk of change, but it sure beats the $2,000 per infusion price someone posted earlier!  The billing person said that the cost is much lower since a generic version of it has been around for a few years.