Hair Stats

hartrish - I started on Femara (manufactured by Mylan) right after Femara became generic.  I did fine for about 6 months or so and then developed a very painful trigger thumb on my dominant hand, along with the expected joint pain.  My onc switched me to generic Arimidex, the trigger resolved and I was fine for a year.  I then had a minor bump to my right knee but it swelled up like mad and I eventually needed a cortisone injection. I also developed triggers in my wedding ring finger, two toes and my ankle.  I decided to switch back to Femara since that is the drug my onc favors because I figured if I was having these issues I might as well.  When I filled the prescription it was a different manufacturer - Teva.  Since that point I have had no issues!  I also changed my diet to eliminate inflammatory foods and have had no more joint pain.  Moral of this long story is that if you have side effects change manufacturers - some of the dyes and fillers cause problems and you may have to experiment to find the one that works for you.  I make sure that the pharmacy (my neighborhood CVS) orders the one I want.  Also, if you find that the generics are causing too many issues you can ask your onc to write your prescription for Femara, the brand name - not generic, and have them add "dispense as written" on it.  You usually need to have demonstrated intolerance for the generics for insurance to pay though.  Good luck!

I only had one chemo treatment but would almost consider it again for the hair I got out of it. I always had straight hair and it came back curly and soft. A hair stylist could not have given me this. I am a year and 7 months from chemo and only losing a bit of curl now. Silver lining. :-)