Good stories about Femara?

g, I started out with Arimidex and was switched to Femara because of joint and bone pain. I'm much more comfortable on Femara and have fewer hotflashes than with Arimidex. Good luck.

I split my meds into morning and evening, mostly because some of my pills are double doses. Femara is in the morning for me. Yummy with breakfast.

I started Femara last October and am also on Lupron. My onc is not recommending ooph. At first I had some general stiffness in the morning and if I'd been sitting for a while, also stiffness in my hands, but not bad. All of a sudden about a month ago I realized I no longer was stiff at all, nothing (beyond my usual pre-Femara/pre-bc symptoms from arthritis , especially in my back at times). I have no other side effects from the Femara. I take all three of my medicines at night, Femara, Lexapro, Zantac, which seems to work just fine. The resolution of the stiffness was a pleasant surprise.

g,

Are you getting the monthy lupron shot or the once every three months shot?

For my first year on lupron and Femara,  I used to get my estradiol levels checked every month.  One month the results came back in the non-menopausal range, after coming back menopausal for many months.  The onc and I decided it was probably an incorrect lab! 

Anyway, I have now been doing the monthly lupron and Femara for about 3 years.  I went into chemopause after chemo, but since I was stage III (9 positive lymph nodes), we decided to "assure" menopause with the lupron (by the way I am 51 now and still getting the shots).  An ooph would put an end to me needing to visit the oncology office every 28 days, but I have been hesitant to go for another surgery and my onc seems to want me on lupron. For how long, he never says--could be at least 5 years.  I am tempted to just stop the shots and see if my period comes back, but I am afraid I would screw up my hormones and would be angry with myself if I then recurred.  

As for side effects, well unwanted weight gain is my biggest issue.  Joint pain, elevated cholesterol and hypertension have also graced my body.  I guess the lack of estrogen accelerates the aging process .

But let's all remember the best side effect-- NED! 

I take my Femara in the morning as soon as I wake up.  I don't want to forget! 

Hi all, I'm very new to this board.  I'm am in the opposite position as you are.  Have been on femara for 3 years but have had a couple of small new mets recently.  My onc has suggested possibly tamoxifen.  My hair stood on end because I have only ever heard bad stuff about the side effects.

Does anybody know the stats on tamoxefin side effects?  I had all the typical side effect with femara, aching muscles and bones, weight gain, sore abdomen at times.  Also hot flashes and night sweats,  which were no big deal.  A lot of my discomfort and stiffness has been from the femara rather than from the cancer.  I have always just reminded myself that it was preventing new mets so I could live with it.  Seems like you may find femara less toxic.  I'm very nervous about tamoxifen.

I'm so pleased to find this place to talk and ask questions!!

Pat 

Here's a good story about Femara:

Much of the recent research on Femara (letrozole) has shown that it does not increase cholesterol levels--at least, not significantly.  Neither do the other AI's (Arimidex and Aromasin).  Here's an example:

http://annonc.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/16/5/707

The current theory is that the AI's have no net effect on total cholesterol, LDL, or HDL; and they might even decrease triglyceride levels.  The increase in cholesterol that has been reported in women on AI's would have occurred anyway, if they had not been taking an AI.

Much of the original concern about AI's causing an increase in cholesterol (which is even stated here on the BCO website) was based on studies in which an AI was compared to Tamoxifen.  This comparison was necessary in the early work on AI's, because the goal of those studies was to decrease BC recurrence or lengthen disease-free survival, and Tamoxifen was the "standard of care" then for ER+ tumors.  Tamoxifen is known to decrease cholesterol levels; so when compared to Tamoxifen, cholesterol levels with the AI were higher.

Newer studies have looked at the efficacy of AI's compared to "placebo".  Most were done on women who had completed 5 years of Tamoxifen or AI and were continued on the AI (or placebo).  Once Tamoxifen is out of the picture, the effects of the AI's on blood lipids look very different:  In most studies, there has been no significant effect of the AI on cholesterol levels.

The bottom line is that some of us will need to be on cholesterol-lowering drugs because of our family history, body weight or type, personal metabolism, whatever--but probably not solely because we are on an AI.

I hope this is good news.  I haven't included the references to the journal articles here, but I can post or send them to anyone who is interested. 

otter 

hi everyone

My Mum has been on Femara now for nearly 3 months and no side effects whatsoever,she walks a lot and is quite active.  Her oncologist  said femara  is better for pr-ve women as it lowers oestrogen a bit more than arimidex.   Anyway its good to know theres no side effects yet (fingers crossed) for some.

Love SuzieandMum  XXXX

I took Femara for 18 months - the side effects that I had, joint pain in my wrists and thumbs so bad that I needed cortisone shots, went away when I went off the Femara.

I also took it at night so I could sleep through any other side effects I might have <grin>. 

It kept me NED for about 17 months so I put up with the side effects. 

Good luck & hugs -

Lynn

I take it before bed because it makes me tired.  At first, I had NO side effects and then after several months, I had EXTREME hot flashes 24/7.  Those subsided after a few months and now I have mild hot flashes maybe a couple during the day and if I'm having them at night, they aren't waking me up.  I keep the joint thing at bay with Glucosamine/Chrondroitin/MSM and Fish Oil.  I did have some nerve thing going on in my hand, knee and foot but my hand and knee are better, just the side of my foot now and I'm working on it.  I'm going for acupuncture shortly for it.  So for me, the side effects have been a revolving door but it is so far 'doable'.  Oh, I also had the upset stomach from it for a few months.....that caused me to be constantly gnawing on something trying to 'fix' it.  That added a few pounds which I need to take off.  Best wishes

Just saw your comment on cholesterol.  Mine went way up...to 231.  I used apple cider vinegar, niacin (500mg before bed) and Red Rice Yeast (just took one capsule daily).   Mine came down to 159 with my 'good' cholesterol going up from 59 to 74 and my bad cholesterol going from 149 to 74. 

recently I have green experiencing body and joint pain..maybe side effects of Femara.