Femara - should I go on it?

piseminger

Hi everyone, today is my first day on the board. I just finished my 33 rounds of radiation. I was diagnosed in October of 2008 with breast cancer. I also went through 16 rounds of chemo. What I what to know is.... are any of you taking femara? Because my cancer is estrogen positive my chemo doctor wants me to take Femara for the next 5 years but I have mixed feeling on it. If you are taking it how long have you been on it, are you experiencing any side effectss and what are you thoughts on the subject. Thanks for you insight. Penny

CR1954

Hi Penny.......
Hello and welcome to the board.

My bc was not estrogen positive, so I am of no help regarding Femara. But I wanted to say hello.........

CR

janmill99

Femara
I am a 7 year survivor that has been on Femara for five years. I don't intend to stop taking it right now. I was Stg. IIIB and although I have side effects, I have been cancer free.

I had hot flashes in the beginning that have lessened. I have joint pain, foot pain and hair loss that has become better with the use of Rogaine for women.

I think Femara is reponsible for keeping me cancer free so I tolerate the side effects. It has been proven very effective for post menapausal women with agressive breast cancer. However, we all have to make our own decisions. I hope this helps you to make yours.

NancySabet

I was on tomaxafin for 3
I was on tomaxafin for 3 years and then went on Femara for 2. My cancer has spread to my bone. look like femara did not help.

piseminger

janmill99 said:

Femara
I am a 7 year survivor that has been on Femara for five years. I don't intend to stop taking it right now. I was Stg. IIIB and although I have side effects, I have been cancer free.

I had hot flashes in the beginning that have lessened. I have joint pain, foot pain and hair loss that has become better with the use of Rogaine for women.

I think Femara is reponsible for keeping me cancer free so I tolerate the side effects. It has been proven very effective for post menapausal women with agressive breast cancer. However, we all have to make our own decisions. I hope this helps you to make yours.

thanks for the input
its a bit scarry worried I won't make the right decision. I realize I am the only one who can make that decision realizing that living or dying could be determined by my decision.

How bad was your hair loss and do you take anything that helps with the pain?

God has been good to me with minimal side effects with both chemo and radiation so I know I will have to continue to put my trust in him.

My mother is a 27 year survivor of breast cancer. She did not do chemo nor radiation. We can only hope for the same survival rate for me.
Penny

piseminger

NancySabet said:

I was on tomaxafin for 3
I was on tomaxafin for 3 years and then went on Femara for 2. My cancer has spread to my bone. look like femara did not help.

so sorry
I am so sorry for your results. Why did you change from tomaxafin to Femara? My husband has a coworker whose daughter got a blood clot as a result of being on the tomaxafin - thankfully they caught it in time. That is why I am considering Femara.

ohilly

piseminger said:

so sorry
I am so sorry for your results. Why did you change from tomaxafin to Femara? My husband has a coworker whose daughter got a blood clot as a result of being on the tomaxafin - thankfully they caught it in time. That is why I am considering Femara.

Femara
I feel like I will keep on taking Femara no matter what because I am so afraid of recurrence. But I have had the following side effects: thinning hair, insomnia, and pretty bad depression and anxiety. I dealt with the thinning hair by having a good hairstylist camouflage it. I still have the insomnia. What I am battling with now is the depression. I plan to go see a psychiatrist soon to discuss taking medication for this.

So that's my experience. Good luck with your decision!

Ohilly

ohilly

piseminger said:

so sorry
I am so sorry for your results. Why did you change from tomaxafin to Femara? My husband has a coworker whose daughter got a blood clot as a result of being on the tomaxafin - thankfully they caught it in time. That is why I am considering Femara.

Femara
I feel like I will keep on taking Femara no matter what because I am so afraid of recurrence. But I have had the following side effects: thinning hair, insomnia, and pretty bad depression and anxiety. I dealt with the thinning hair by having a good hairstylist camouflage it. I still have the insomnia. What I am battling with now is the depression. I plan to go see a psychiatrist soon to discuss taking medication for this.

So that's my experience. Good luck with your decision!

Ohilly

arbojenn

ohilly said:

Femara
I feel like I will keep on taking Femara no matter what because I am so afraid of recurrence. But I have had the following side effects: thinning hair, insomnia, and pretty bad depression and anxiety. I dealt with the thinning hair by having a good hairstylist camouflage it. I still have the insomnia. What I am battling with now is the depression. I plan to go see a psychiatrist soon to discuss taking medication for this.

So that's my experience. Good luck with your decision!

Ohilly

Effexor
Ohilly, with my first bout of cancer and femara, I had been on Effexor for depression and anxiety. I didn't have any noticeable side effects with the femara, and I think it was because I had already been on the effexor and it was in my system from the getgo. Oncologists often prescribe the effexor to patients on femara to help with the hot flashes. I don't know if anyone has mentioned on the posts that it is also prescribed for depression and anxiety. The dosages might be different, so when you ask your onc about it, be sure to mention the depression and anxiety as side effects as well as the hot flashes. Hair thinning could be due to the Femara, but it could also be due to the stress caused by depression and anxiety which do affect how your body uses nutrients. I did not have insomnia when I was on effexor, but I do now--I am on Xanax instead of effexor. I just may try to switch back onto the effexor.

arbojenn

My vote is yes
If your onc recommends it, I say go for it despite the side effects. I had er+ invasive ductal ten years ago, stage IIb. Had mastectomy, chemo, and five years of tamoxifen. I was premenopausal before the chemo, but never had another period. So after the tamox, I was put on Femara. I quit that after a year because of bone thinning and I thought I was "safe" as I was five years out and only had one positive node, fully encapsulated, anyway. Was diagnosed with the recurrence in May of this year. I've read some research about how in post menopause the aromatase inhibitors give better results than the tamox. Anyway, since I had reconstruction on the side removed, some of my tumors are on the surface. When I started the femara as neoadjuvant therapy, I could actually SEE it working to shrink the tumors: some have even disappeared altogether in only two months! I am having some side effects (nothing I can't handle)--before I had taken effexor and it must have helped because I can't recall having any last time--but the daily visual reminder of how potent this drug is keeps me taking it. I didn't have radiation last time, but I will this time: neoadjuvant femara, surgery (end of August) to remove reconstruction and surrounding skin and tissue and remove the other breast, radiation, then femara for five years. This time, I will stick with the femara for the full five years. I am fully convinced my cancer took so long to come back because that femara stayed in my system long after I quit taking it. If I take it the full five years, I figure if any microscopic cells DO survive, I will be well in my hundreds before it shows up again! (I am 58 now.) If something else hasn't claimed me, I just might be ready to go by then.

ADDED IN AN EDIT: Tamoxifen and aromatase inhibitors work in different ways. Tamox is used most often with pre-menopausal women as it works in the cancer cell to prevent the receptor from receiving the estrogen. The ovaries are still producing a LOT of estrogen. In post menopausal women, the ovaries are not where most of the estrogen comes from: instead, the adrenal glands secrete an enzyme--aromatase--which is converted into estrogen in body tissues like fat cells. The femara and drugs like it prevent the conversion so very little estrogen, if any, is being circulated in the body. In pre menopausal women, the ovaries are put out of commission--either permanently or for a time--if AIs will be used as the aromatase inhibitors do not affect estrogen produced by the ovaries. (My brother directs research on ovarian cancer so when I ask him a question, I get mini crash courses!)

Terri5

NancySabet said:

I was on tomaxafin for 3
I was on tomaxafin for 3 years and then went on Femara for 2. My cancer has spread to my bone. look like femara did not help.

I was on tamoxifin for about
I was on tamoxifin for about 1and half yrs. then switched to femara. My dr. switched me because of menopause. She said tamoxifin was more for pre-menopausal and femara for post-menopausal. I have a lot of joint pain from the femara and I still have 3 yrs. to go. I'm sorry about yours spreading to your bones, what was your stage of cancer?

Terri5

NancySabet said:

I was on tomaxafin for 3
I was on tomaxafin for 3 years and then went on Femara for 2. My cancer has spread to my bone. look like femara did not help.

I was on tamoxifin for about
I was on tamoxifin for about 1and half yrs. then switched to femara. My dr. switched me because of menopause. She said tamoxifin was more for pre-menopausal and femara for post-menopausal. I have a lot of joint pain from the femara and I still have 3 yrs. to go. I'm sorry about yours spreading to your bones, what was your stage of cancer?