Losing weight on Letrozole

I am very interested in this as well. I started Letrozole just over a week ago. I am desperately trying to lose weight. However, I have gained 1/2 pound each day for 2 days in a row. My food has been stable and there is no reason for that weight gain. I am extremely concerned. I need to lose!

emma99....How long have you been on it? Have you had weight gain or trouble losing?

emma99....No, I'm only on Letrozole. However, I am pretty sure I figured out the real culprit. I have chronic hives that flared with a vengeance just over a month ago. It will take the med I am on for them at least 2 months to kick in. In the meantime, they are so bad that I am on prednisone. I didn't think I was on a high enough dose to cause side effects. Upon your comment, I started investigating, and sure enough I believe I discovered the problem. Unfortunately I will be on it for probably another month so things won't get better any time soon. However, at least I know the cause, and hopefully it is temporary. I am doing all I can to prevent weight gain. Once the hives are under better control I will also start exercising again. Thank you for your help.

emma99...Ugh, I hate you deal with chronic hives. Yep, mine is officially "chronic idiopathic urticaria" too. I am very lucky that my immunologist is at a major medical center and quite knowledgeable about this. I didn't have to have any testing at all. She looked at the hive record I had been keeping and knew immediately what it was. There is a drug that will control them, Plaquenil. I was on it for over a year but had weaned off this past January. Unfortunately with the stress my body was under with the biopsies and associated procedures for the lumpectomy, they just returned with a vengeance. I contacted her immediately and got back on Plaquenil, but it takes at least 6-8 weeks for the Plaquenil to get to work effectively on them. In the meantime, as you know, they have been absolutely debilitating. They were in full force when I had my lumpectomy, which was not fun at all, and they have continued to be hell for over a month now. I have finally gotten on a high enough dose of prednisone (my dr tried her best to not have to put me on a higher and regular dose of it because it is very hard for chronic hive patients to wean off) that today, for the first day in over a month, I don't have even one. Needless to say, I will be on Plaquenil for a very long time and have no interest in trying to wean off it again! If you find yours returning, do ask your dr about Plaquenil, I found it does a great job keeping them under good control. Hopefully it will come through for me this time too.

emma99 If your hives get worse or just won't go away I would highly recommend an immunologist that can treat them more effectively. The itching is maddening isn't it? Over the last month there have been times that I truly had more hives than clear skin. I also bruise where hives have been from all the scratching. I have started calling the hive the "devil's hemorrhoids". I was told to never take NSAIDs because they cause hives. I take 40mg Zyrtec daily (eventually when the Plaquenil kicks in I will wean back down to the typical 10mg dose). Plaquenil does come with risks. I have to see the eye dr every 6 months to keep a close watch on my retinas.

It is interesting that yours didn't develop until after your first child. My immunologist said she would never be able to prove it but that she feels like mine (mine started 2 years ago) started as a result of my immune system trying to fight off the cancer as it started to grow. My primary dr said he has heard that as well. I have several other auto-immune issues so it is pretty obvious that my immune system doesn't work as it should.

Hi everyone, I am very interested in this topic as well. I am currently on anastrozole but my MO wants to switch me to letrozole because of my severe hot flashes. I gained about 20 pounds since my diagnosis and have been trying like crazy to lose it. I am logging my food, not eating many carbs, and doing a ton of exercise. The weight has started to come off, though very, very slowly. I am really worried that switching meds will cause me to gain. On the medication side effects chart on this site, weight gain is listed as a side effect of letrozole, but not anastrozole.

I'm holding steady on the weight but it's hard to say because I started the Letrozole right about the time the Covid lockdown happened so while I may be stress-eating at home, I am eating healthier simply due to not eating out as much.