Please help me get thru Aromasin

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achad
achad Member Posts: 2
edited March 2015 in Managing Side Effects of Breast Cancer and Its Treatment

Hello all,

Am on my seventh month of Aromasin (after having been on Tamoxifen for 1 year 9 mos). Am also on clinical trial of Cymbalta vs placebo for bone pain. Have read more side effects and unhappy stories while on aromatase inhibitors and reasons to stop their use than to continue them. I have many of the common side effects myself: 25% weight gain, lethargy! unbelievable bone pain, steroid-like thickness in my core, neck and face, hair thinning, elevated cholesterol, elevated blood sugars. I feel like I have traded lowering my risk for cancer recurrence for increased cardiovascular risks and metabolic syndrome. I do not consume sugar and am on a modified Mediterranean-Paleo diet. I know I need to increase my exercise activity but as many of you know it is difficult to do when you hurt and are lethargic.

What I need is reaffirmation and encouraging words to stick with this for two and a half more years. I need to hear from the women who have plodded through this same field and came out on the other side. Any words of encouragement will be welcome. I want to stick with this so my chances are the best they can be...but my quality of life is suffering tremendously. And I know I am not alone.

Thank you

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  • Iniah
    Iniah Member Posts: 70
    edited February 2015

    Hello Achad

    I am in your same shoes....I took Tamoxifen for over a year and then switched to Femara (like Aromasin). It is not easy for sure to get through treatment, as my side effects of Femara are much worse than Tamoxifen for me as well. I don't know if I will stay on Femara (has been 8 months). If not, I will go back to Tamoxifen. I looked at the studies on line, and the difference of both treatments is there, with an aromatase inhibitor working better than Tamoxifen. However, the difference is not huge, and quality of life has to be a deciding factor as well. Have you tried fish oil, turmeric, vitamins and vit. E for your pain? Do you take ibuprofen to help with the inflammation? Exercise does help allot for the joint and muscle pain in my case. Also, try meditation, 10 min. or more per day, when you just let it all go, clear your mind and try to connect with your spirit, which does not have cancer by the way! I know the road is long and hard, and if you felt significantly better on Tamoxifen, it is an option for you and me. I will do 5 years at least of hormonal therapy for sure, and I hope you will too.

    My oncologist says that after 2 years, side effects on aromatase inhibitors fade. Does anyone have any experience with this? I can't imagine feeling this way for over a year longer, as I did much better on Tamoxifen.

    Hang in there Achad, take it day by day. I am here for you.


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  • achad
    achad Member Posts: 2
    edited March 2015

    Thank you Iniah! I truly have been wavering back and forth...but I did call in my refill today. I will try to take it day by day. After all, we are lucky. Five years...or even ten for those who need ten years of therapy is bearable with some support. There are many who suffer long therapies for chronic disease. I know I just need to plow through.

    Alas, I cannot return to tamoxifen. I had a vitreal tear last summer from lifting too much weight over a weekend of building a rock wall and it bled when tearing. Both my oncologist and ophthalmologist thought it best to switch me to the aromatase inhibitors that have less risk of retina issues....however there are reports of optic issues with Arimidex also. So I chose Aromasin or Femara as my safer bets. Perhaps I will try switching to Femara. At least it is not a steroid based drug. Maybe it will lessen some of my side effects. For pain I do use ibuprofen, acetaminophen, naproxen, and if it is very bad- Norco at night. I heard Claritin might help...as it does for Neulasta pain. Am trying it today. Yes on the fish oil and turmeric. Most beneficial has been the Duloxetine. Am just weaning off it because the trial is drawing to a close. Because my pain is increasing I think I must have had the real thing and not the placebo. Once the trial is closed I can have my oncologist write me for a true prescription. I highly recommend this for pain for others who are in our same boat.

    Exercise. I miss really exercising. Like skiing all day or riding horses all day, or backpacking all week. I need to just look at it in baby steps I guess. Do what I can...start with walking. And yes yoga. It has been a lifesaver.

    ThAnk you for being brave and sharing with me. And all of us. I hope to keep on itherapy until Oct 2017 because, yes, the data is there to support it. Thank God for the data from all the women who have gone before us. Perhaps our data will help the women of the future.

    Have a great weekend!

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