Tamoxifen Dosage

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Strawberry8
Strawberry8 Member Posts: 35
edited April 2016 in Hormonal Therapy - Before, During, and After

Hi, my oncologist has prescribed me 20mg Tamoxifen twice a day. I have LCIS so when I looked up the dosage online I assumed I would be given the 20mg once a day as prescribed to those with increased risk. My prescription is only 30 pills and I have two refills and a 3 month follow up appt. So maybe it was a mistake because that prescription would only last me 45 days.

I already left a message to make sure the dose is right before I start taking it this weekend. I would imagine the probability of experiencing side effects would increase with a higher dosage.

What dosage have you been taking? Is a 40mg dose high

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  • Lucy55
    Lucy55 Member Posts: 3,044
    edited April 2016

    Stawberry.. I think it's good that you are checking with the doctor about the dosage.. I have 20 mg once a day.

    Let us know what onc says.

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  • ayr1016
    ayr1016 Member Posts: 228
    edited April 2016

    Did your oncologist tell you that you would be taking 40mg a day? or was it just on the bottle/instructions when you picked it up? Definitely check with your dr. about the dosage. But, mistakes happen. My dr. told me Tamoxifen and when I got the call from the pharmacist, an AI was filled instead of Tamoxifen. So, I had to call my dr. back to get that fixed.

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  • Strawberry8
    Strawberry8 Member Posts: 35
    edited April 2016

    You know, I don't recall if he gave a dosage. It seemed like all of the websites I found gave the 20 mg dosage for all but metastatic cancer treatment. I might be a little overcautious here but I would hate to take more than is truly necessary.

    I do know that all doctors in my state are now required to give electronic prescriptions and they go straight to the pharmacy, no more paper scripts.

    I will post again when I hear from the onc later today.

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  • Sjacobs146
    Sjacobs146 Member Posts: 770
    edited April 2016

    from what I have seen, most women are on 20mg a day, but I have heard of at least one woman who was on 40mg per day. Definitely a good idea to check on this. Don't over worry about SEs, I have been on Tamox for a year now, and have no SEs except for the occasional hot flash, which I was getting befor Tamox due to chemo pause. Some women have them, but many don't

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  • Strawberry8
    Strawberry8 Member Posts: 35
    edited April 2016

    thanks sjacobs, I am happy to hear your SE experience has been mild. I hope I will beable to say the same.

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  • labelle
    labelle Member Posts: 721
    edited April 2016

    I also take 20 mg per day. This does seem to be the standard dose. Mistakes do happen sometimes at the pharmacy so it is good that you are checking.

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  • Strawberry8
    Strawberry8 Member Posts: 35
    edited April 2016

    so the mystery has finally been solved, my doctor made a mistake, the dosage is in fact 20mg per day. Now I just have to decide what time of day to take it. I really have been enjoying nottaking a pill every day since I had my hysterectomy. But I will also enjoy reducing my risk of breast cancer, hopefully.

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