Should I consider oophorectomy at 31?

stephilosphy00
stephilosphy00 Member Posts: 386
edited April 2018 in Stage III Breast Cancer

Hi ladies, I am very struggling with this now and my onc is not able to give me answer yet!

I have been on Lupron for 1.5 years and Aromasin for 8 months. My estradiol was 17 when I started Aromasin, now it is 21 (checked the day Lupron was due)! I know Lupron is working but my E2 level is definitely not low enough! Am I in menopause now? I have seen many places online E2 < 28-32 can be considered postmenopausal or it has to be under 10? I am just afraid I am under incomplete ovarian suppression and AI is not working well for me now.

I am only 31, just got married and have no plan for baby. Should I consider oophorectomy to be in real menopause so I can keep being on AI?


Thank you so much! I am not able to find answer anywhere else, hopefully anyone could give me some advice! Thank you very much!

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  • Kathleen26
    Kathleen26 Member Posts: 210
    edited March 2018

    I don't know enough to know if you menopausal or not, but I'll throw a few ideas out there:

    Have you had genetic testing? Finding out you have either BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations would definitely be a reason to consider oopherectomy. You can have these mutations even if there is no history of breast cancer in your family. Having breast cancer at a young age is often related to having these mutations.

    Oopherectomy is a pretty simple surgery with a generally easy recovery, so the big question is do you think you need to hang on to your ovaries? Only you can answer that.

    If the MO thinks the Lupron is not working, i.e. not keeping E2 low enough, and you're not ready to give up your ovaries, you might consider going back to Tamoxifen. Did you have a problem tolerating it? I believe there's a test you can take to see if you're one of the few people who don't metabolize Tamoxifen correctly, and therefore don't benefit from it. If your MO is considering going back to Tamoxifen, I would ask for that test.


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  • stephilosphy00
    stephilosphy00 Member Posts: 386
    edited March 2018

    Thank you Kathleen! I met another pre-menopausal women who is on Zoladex + Arimidex for more than 3 years. She said her Estradiol level is always about 20, while her doctor never thinks there is a problem. She gets treatment at MD Anderson. I am very confused why there is no straight answer about that.

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  • Kathleen26
    Kathleen26 Member Posts: 210
    edited March 2018

    There's no straight answer to a lot of things related to breast cancer (well, let's just say many areas of medicine), and I think it's because no one really knows for sure. Lots of educated opinions around, but lots of gray areas. I think that will always be true because everyone is a little different. What might be fine for one person, might be totally wrong for someone else.

    I hope you are able to get answers from your MO that make you feel more comfortable with your situation.

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  • stephilosphy00
    stephilosphy00 Member Posts: 386
    edited April 2018

    Did a sensitive estradiol test at Labcorp earlier this week which came back at 2.6pg/ml! Big relief!

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