Arimidex

artful

I am trying to decide if I should take Arimidex. I was prescribed this medication and had no idea about the possible side effects. Does anyone know the stats if cancer will return if the medication is not taken?

sbmly53

Don't know stats.
I started June 1st last year. Have had leg cramps, so far that's it.

Sue

aisling8

I think
the stats is a topic to talk over with your doctor.

I can tell you, though, that I didn't have any side effects till I began taking the generic Arimidex, and even those (intermittent achy fingers, bottoms of my feet hurt -- I know, it's weird -- and sometimes I feel cranky for no real reason) aren't constant or debilitating and I consider myself lucky that I have a drug I can take to help keep cancer away. But that's just me.

Some people are having a harder time with the side effects and I just wanted younto hear from someone who isn't as you sit there staring at that bottle trying to decide whether to take it or not:)

Good luck.

xoxo
Victoria

Double Whammy

aisling8 said:

I think
the stats is a topic to talk over with your doctor.

I can tell you, though, that I didn't have any side effects till I began taking the generic Arimidex, and even those (intermittent achy fingers, bottoms of my feet hurt -- I know, it's weird -- and sometimes I feel cranky for no real reason) aren't constant or debilitating and I consider myself lucky that I have a drug I can take to help keep cancer away. But that's just me.

Some people are having a harder time with the side effects and I just wanted younto hear from someone who isn't as you sit there staring at that bottle trying to decide whether to take it or not:)

Good luck.

xoxo
Victoria

No side effects
I started generic Arimidex 2 months ago and have no side effects. You won't know whether you'll have se or not unless you take them.

I don't know what the numbers are, but it (and the other AIs and Tamoxifen) certainly has been a breakthrough in the prevention of recurrence of bc. Your oncologist should be able to provide the percentages for you.

Suzanne

lizzie17

almost 3 years on Arimidex
I take it because my oncologist said it is the best treatment for me. Most days, I feel pretty good, but I do have bone pain in my legs, now my feet, too. Something makes me forget the correct word and substitute a completely different word. He said not to worry, it will all go away after taking the drug. I am not fond of it, but I promised my daughters that I will do what the doctor says.

lizzie17

one more thing
they based mine on my ONCO-TYPE DX score....did you get one?

artful

lizzie17 said:

one more thing
they based mine on my ONCO-TYPE DX score....did you get one?

score
I don't know. Would I find it on my pathology report? My diagnosis was invasive ductal cancer with DCIS. No cancer in lymph nodes, stage 1 cancer, lumpectomy and 5 day radiation.

mom62

artful said:

score
I don't know. Would I find it on my pathology report? My diagnosis was invasive ductal cancer with DCIS. No cancer in lymph nodes, stage 1 cancer, lumpectomy and 5 day radiation.

No Side Effects
Hi,

I was on Tamoxafin for 5 years, my cancer came back. I'm now on Arimedex and have no side effects. You can only be on it if you are post menaposal. They put me in menapose with Lupron shots I get every three months to shut my ovaries down. I am estrogen positive. My doctor thinks its better than tamoxifin but that is his opinion. I hope so.........

Terry

cabbott

Arimidex
Nobody can tell you what the future holds. But if you read the research, some drugs are more effective than others in reducing the risk of cancer reoccurance and increasing your life span. Tamoxifen was great when it was invented and the research showed it was as effective as some pretty drastic surgery women used to go through to try to stay alive. Arimidex and the other aromatase inhibitors are twice as effective as Tamoxifen. I was on a cousin to arimidex for 5 years and finished my last pill last week. I would go back on it in a heartbeat if the research said it would increase my lifespan and reduce the risk of cancer. I had minimal side effects: hot flashes that I would have had anyhow were the worst of the effects. The drug didn't lower my LDL as well as Tamoxifen(I was on that for 3 years before the aromatase inhibitor). I learned that I needed vitamin D3 especially in the winter to protect my joints and keep them pain free. And I learned that I needed to avoid over-use injuries and exercise regularly to stay pain free. Overall, I was pain-free except when my D3 level fell.

Some folks are not able to take the aromatase inhibitors including Arimidex. They get arthritis type pain that doesn't go away until they go off the drug. These folks are not the majority though they certainly do have a recognized problem. Research is proceeding on finding out how to tell which women can't take the drug. Until then, the easiest way to find out if you can take it is just to try it out for a month or two. The side effects are nothing like chemotherapy and the main effect--a longer lifespan--is worth taking one pill a day for 5 years, at least for me. You will have to make your own decision.

The stats that I was given when I first got breast cancer is that Tamoxifen cuts your risk of a repeat cancer in half. Arimidex is twice as good as Tamoxifen. So if you have an aggressive breast cancer that reoccurs 50% of the time within two years, Tamoxifen cuts your risk to 25% of the time (or a 75% chance of making 2 years without a reoccurance) and Arimidex cuts your risk to 12.5% (or gives you a 87.5% chance of making 2 years without a reoccurance). If your chance of a repeat performance is less, then the benefit may be less spectacular, but it is still twice as good as Tamoxifen which was far better than doing nothing. We still don't have a sure cure, though we certainly need one. You have to decide what is right for you. Good luck!

artful

cabbott said:

Arimidex
Nobody can tell you what the future holds. But if you read the research, some drugs are more effective than others in reducing the risk of cancer reoccurance and increasing your life span. Tamoxifen was great when it was invented and the research showed it was as effective as some pretty drastic surgery women used to go through to try to stay alive. Arimidex and the other aromatase inhibitors are twice as effective as Tamoxifen. I was on a cousin to arimidex for 5 years and finished my last pill last week. I would go back on it in a heartbeat if the research said it would increase my lifespan and reduce the risk of cancer. I had minimal side effects: hot flashes that I would have had anyhow were the worst of the effects. The drug didn't lower my LDL as well as Tamoxifen(I was on that for 3 years before the aromatase inhibitor). I learned that I needed vitamin D3 especially in the winter to protect my joints and keep them pain free. And I learned that I needed to avoid over-use injuries and exercise regularly to stay pain free. Overall, I was pain-free except when my D3 level fell.

Some folks are not able to take the aromatase inhibitors including Arimidex. They get arthritis type pain that doesn't go away until they go off the drug. These folks are not the majority though they certainly do have a recognized problem. Research is proceeding on finding out how to tell which women can't take the drug. Until then, the easiest way to find out if you can take it is just to try it out for a month or two. The side effects are nothing like chemotherapy and the main effect--a longer lifespan--is worth taking one pill a day for 5 years, at least for me. You will have to make your own decision.

The stats that I was given when I first got breast cancer is that Tamoxifen cuts your risk of a repeat cancer in half. Arimidex is twice as good as Tamoxifen. So if you have an aggressive breast cancer that reoccurs 50% of the time within two years, Tamoxifen cuts your risk to 25% of the time (or a 75% chance of making 2 years without a reoccurance) and Arimidex cuts your risk to 12.5% (or gives you a 87.5% chance of making 2 years without a reoccurance). If your chance of a repeat performance is less, then the benefit may be less spectacular, but it is still twice as good as Tamoxifen which was far better than doing nothing. We still don't have a sure cure, though we certainly need one. You have to decide what is right for you. Good luck!

Arimidex
Thanks for your helpful response!

CypressCynthia

Talk with your oncologist
I have been on arimidex for 2 years and have had few side effects: sometimes a crick in my neck. Almost any reasonable side effect beats cancer to me.

FYI, when I was first diagnosed with Stage 3A breast cancer in 1987, my prognosis was poor. The new kid on the block for my ER+ cancer was tamoxifen (similar to arimidex). Back then I took it for 7 years because no one had any idea how long to take it or even if I should take it.

It made sense to me to try a drug that kept my tumor from using my estrogen to feed itself. And tamoxifen is why I survived this long.

I had a recurrence in 2009 (bone mets) and was then put on arimidex. I have responded well to the arimidex and my doc says I will be on it until it stops working.

As to stats about whether your cancer will return without arimidex, I would have to have to have your path report and lab tests and then go through med school and an oncology rotation to interpret them...lol.

Seriously, do not underestimate or blow off your diagnosis. Fight as if your life were on the line, because it is. We have lost so many valiant warriors lately--there is no way I would recommend ignoring the recommendation of your doc.

artful

CypressCynthia said:

Talk with your oncologist
I have been on arimidex for 2 years and have had few side effects: sometimes a crick in my neck. Almost any reasonable side effect beats cancer to me.

FYI, when I was first diagnosed with Stage 3A breast cancer in 1987, my prognosis was poor. The new kid on the block for my ER+ cancer was tamoxifen (similar to arimidex). Back then I took it for 7 years because no one had any idea how long to take it or even if I should take it.

It made sense to me to try a drug that kept my tumor from using my estrogen to feed itself. And tamoxifen is why I survived this long.

I had a recurrence in 2009 (bone mets) and was then put on arimidex. I have responded well to the arimidex and my doc says I will be on it until it stops working.

As to stats about whether your cancer will return without arimidex, I would have to have to have your path report and lab tests and then go through med school and an oncology rotation to interpret them...lol.

Seriously, do not underestimate or blow off your diagnosis. Fight as if your life were on the line, because it is. We have lost so many valiant warriors lately--there is no way I would recommend ignoring the recommendation of your doc.

Arimidex
I understand you totally, yet for some reason unknown I am still undecided. I have reactions, side effects to most medications I have been prescribed, before cancer. I am a stage 1. I have my path report. Just trying to make sense of it all.

lizzie17

artful said:

score
I don't know. Would I find it on my pathology report? My diagnosis was invasive ductal cancer with DCIS. No cancer in lymph nodes, stage 1 cancer, lumpectomy and 5 day radiation.

oncotypeDX
Mine was a completely different test of my tissue that was sent to a place in California.
I had a double mastectomy. I just remember my score was on the line and it came on an additional report, not part of the path report.

Double Whammy

artful said:

Arimidex
I understand you totally, yet for some reason unknown I am still undecided. I have reactions, side effects to most medications I have been prescribed, before cancer. I am a stage 1. I have my path report. Just trying to make sense of it all.

I was afraid to take it
For some stupid reason, I actually considered not taking it. I knew from the getgo that my bc was estrogen receptor positive and that Arimidex was in my treatment plan, but I was still afraid of the side effects (why I wasn't as afraid of chemo and radiation is beyond me). But I had a talk with myself and figured IF I had side effects, I'd discuss them with my oncologist, but I'd never know if I didn't take it. So far, so good (2 months). I, too, was Stage 1.

Part of the oncotest results should also show the estrogen/progesterone/HER-2 status. Mine was a little different from the initial pathology from biopsy. Oncotype test showed my tumor was also slightly progesterone receptor positive. This is not unsual "they say".

As others have said, I figured the side effects were better than breast cancer and even if I have a recurrence, I will have done everything I can to prevent it. Unfortunately the future is just that - the future and we don't know what might happen or might not happen for sure.

Suzanne

robinsong611

artful said:

Arimidex
I understand you totally, yet for some reason unknown I am still undecided. I have reactions, side effects to most medications I have been prescribed, before cancer. I am a stage 1. I have my path report. Just trying to make sense of it all.

Arimidex
I have been taking Arimidex for 7 months now. I have had debilitating hot flashes, aching in my leg muscles and joints, immediate weight gain, etc... At my December oncologist appt., I discussed this with my doctor. Told her I considered quitting the medication altogether. But the thing is you can battle the side effects too. There are remedies out there for all of these problems...just a matter of finding the right ones for you. I am feeling better already. My leg aches actually lessen with time. I am losing the weight that I put on right away, which I could have avoided had I watched myself in the first place (don't eat more donuts). For my biggest problem with the hot flashes, I will keep trying remedies or suggestions until I find what works for me. I asked my oncologist about stats and she replied there is a 4% better chance of not having a recurrence within 5 years to which I replied "no way am I taking this for a mere 4%". She proceeded to explain that 4% is HUGE! Don't know if this is based on my particular circumstances or not. For me the bottom line is the HUGE difference. If only 4 out of 100 women survive due to this med., I want to be 1 of those 4. Listen to your oncologist...ask for stats...share your concerns. TOGETHER you can decide what is right for you!!!

Also...just wanted to comment that I was given the impression that not all tumors are onco-typed. This is when a section of the tumor is sent to a lab in California and tested to see whether or not chemo is necessary. Did your oncologist discuss this with you? Anyone out there know something that I missed?

robinsong611

robinsong611 said:

Arimidex
I have been taking Arimidex for 7 months now. I have had debilitating hot flashes, aching in my leg muscles and joints, immediate weight gain, etc... At my December oncologist appt., I discussed this with my doctor. Told her I considered quitting the medication altogether. But the thing is you can battle the side effects too. There are remedies out there for all of these problems...just a matter of finding the right ones for you. I am feeling better already. My leg aches actually lessen with time. I am losing the weight that I put on right away, which I could have avoided had I watched myself in the first place (don't eat more donuts). For my biggest problem with the hot flashes, I will keep trying remedies or suggestions until I find what works for me. I asked my oncologist about stats and she replied there is a 4% better chance of not having a recurrence within 5 years to which I replied "no way am I taking this for a mere 4%". She proceeded to explain that 4% is HUGE! Don't know if this is based on my particular circumstances or not. For me the bottom line is the HUGE difference. If only 4 out of 100 women survive due to this med., I want to be 1 of those 4. Listen to your oncologist...ask for stats...share your concerns. TOGETHER you can decide what is right for you!!!

Also...just wanted to comment that I was given the impression that not all tumors are onco-typed. This is when a section of the tumor is sent to a lab in California and tested to see whether or not chemo is necessary. Did your oncologist discuss this with you? Anyone out there know something that I missed?

onco-type dx
Looking back at your treatment plan, it looks like chemo was never in consideration. So if you didn't receive onco-type dx results, you most likely didn't need the test.