Question about ACE Inhibitors after Breast Cancer

jamiegww

I finally allowed my primary doc to put me on blood pressure meds because my blood pressure is staying in the 200/103 range more often than not. She chose to start me with an ACE Inhibitor. I decided to do an Internet search for ACE Inhibitors & Breast Cancer and discovered information on breastcancer.org which indicates taking ACE Inhibitors could increase my risk of recurrance by more than 50%. I just started taking the medication last Wednesday and I don't know if I should stop taking it and go back to refusing blood pressure meds. I was wondering if any of you are taking ACE Inhibitors?

HUGS!!!
Jamie

mamolady

Jamie,
There are other blood
Jamie,
There are other blood pressure meds that they can try. Talk to your oncologist and have her work with your primary care doc. It is good to have only one doctor prescribing meds but everything should be checked with the oncologist.

Cindy

missrenee

mamolady said:

Jamie,
There are other blood
Jamie,
There are other blood pressure meds that they can try. Talk to your oncologist and have her work with your primary care doc. It is good to have only one doctor prescribing meds but everything should be checked with the oncologist.

Cindy

Jamie--Cindy is right
There are other classes of BP meds. Do not count them all out. I battle with BP issues too and I have been on medication for it for a long time. I have a cousin who is my age (59) and just had a massive stroke a few weeks ago, and that's something I don't need on top of everything else.

You'll find the right fit for you--don't give up, it's important to keep that BP in check.

Good luck and let us know how you make out.

Hugs, Renee

carkris

missrenee said:

Jamie--Cindy is right
There are other classes of BP meds. Do not count them all out. I battle with BP issues too and I have been on medication for it for a long time. I have a cousin who is my age (59) and just had a massive stroke a few weeks ago, and that's something I don't need on top of everything else.

You'll find the right fit for you--don't give up, it's important to keep that BP in check.

Good luck and let us know how you make out.

Hugs, Renee

I dont have experience with
I dont have experience with this, but I am a nurse and a blood pressure that high needs to be addressed. As Renee said you do not want to have a stroke, and having a high blood pressure puts a lot of stress on your heart.

Gabe N Abby Mom

It took me three tries to
It took me three tries to find the right BP medication. We finally landed on a beta blocker. There is some research that suggests beta blockers might inhibit the spread of breast cancer.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/235349.php

If you google 'beta blockers and breast cancer' you'll find lots of other articles as well. Although I have to stress the words 'suggest' and 'might' it was enough to make me feel more comfortable about taking the BP meds.

I hope this helps, because you do really need to get that BP under control. You didn't fight your cancer so long and hard to loose quality of life to a stroke.

Hugs,

Linda

laughs_a_lot

Beta Blocker
I am on the beta blocker Propranalol. I requested it because I did some research on line that stated it seemed to inhibit mets in Triple Negative breast cancer. I do not know how it works for the other kinds of bc. This beta blocker inhibits the stress response in the body. I am certain I got my cancer from being overly stressed at a former job. I was already on a BP med. It had brought it down some but the nurse added the beta blocker when I presented her with the research. It brought my blood pressure down to the level it was before I began having a high bp.

jamiegww

Maybe not a problem?
I saw my oncologist today and she specializes is breast cancer so I thought she would know about the ACE inhibitor problem. She seemed surprised and read the info from breastcancer.org. She indicated she would look into it and suggested that if I was concerned, I should contact my primary doc about switching to the beta-blockers. I have stopped the ACE Inhibitors until further notice but she wants me to see a cardiologist anyway because my blood pressure is still really high. I just hate adding another doc to my list. I bet you all know about that! Thanks for the input and I will update you when I know more.

HUGS!!!
Jamie

Noel

missrenee said:

Jamie--Cindy is right
There are other classes of BP meds. Do not count them all out. I battle with BP issues too and I have been on medication for it for a long time. I have a cousin who is my age (59) and just had a massive stroke a few weeks ago, and that's something I don't need on top of everything else.

You'll find the right fit for you--don't give up, it's important to keep that BP in check.

Good luck and let us know how you make out.

Hugs, Renee

Talk to your doctor about
Talk to your doctor about changing to some other blood pressure meds. There are many out there that can help you.


Good luck!

CypressCynthia

jamiegww said:

Maybe not a problem?
I saw my oncologist today and she specializes is breast cancer so I thought she would know about the ACE inhibitor problem. She seemed surprised and read the info from breastcancer.org. She indicated she would look into it and suggested that if I was concerned, I should contact my primary doc about switching to the beta-blockers. I have stopped the ACE Inhibitors until further notice but she wants me to see a cardiologist anyway because my blood pressure is still really high. I just hate adding another doc to my list. I bet you all know about that! Thanks for the input and I will update you when I know more.

HUGS!!!
Jamie

I have been on a beta
I have been on a beta blocker AND an ace inhibitor since 2008, when I had a heart attack. Hoping one will balance out the other, but I will check with my cardiologist next time I see him. I have never had high blood pressure--I am just on the drugs to protect my heart since the MI. Was also put on aspirin and a statin.

jamiegww

CypressCynthia said:

I have been on a beta
I have been on a beta blocker AND an ace inhibitor since 2008, when I had a heart attack. Hoping one will balance out the other, but I will check with my cardiologist next time I see him. I have never had high blood pressure--I am just on the drugs to protect my heart since the MI. Was also put on aspirin and a statin.

Don't worry, CC.
The study indicated that taking a beta blocker and ace inhibitor together could negate the risk so you should be okay. I saw my primary doc Wednesday and she didn't believe the study about ace inhibitors but she agreed to switch me to a calcium channel blocker. She didn't want me to take a beta blocker because my pulse was too low but the calcium channel blocker seems to have lowered my blood pressure to near normal in just two days. I didn't believe that was possible! My body didn't like the ace inhibitor anyway because after the third dose, I developed a pain in my left shoulder which made it difficult to turn my head in that direction. That pain totally went away the day after I discontinued the medication. My doctor thinks it was "all in my head" but it was real to me.

HUGS!!!
Jamie

SIROD

Blood Pressure Medication
Just came out of the hospital after a stay of 4 days for a kidney stone that has been showing up in ct scan for years. It suddenly decided to move on. Very painful but, it did pass. While there, my blood pressure went even higher than yours listed here. I am already using an ARB and left with another prescription to add and this one is an alpha and a beta. I don't know what it all means.

They had a devil of a time with me. Every time they added bp meds in the IV, the bp would drop. Then shoot up again an hour later. Vomiting, headaches were just the few things that made me miserable.

One arm can't be used. IV in the good arm and veins are practically non existing. Blood pressure was taken on my one good ankle, the other one is in bad shape with PTTD. I am not an easy case.

I hope it squares off soon. At least the side effects have gone. It's awful to have so many other medical issues when bc is enough to drive you nuts.

I might have taken an ACE inhibitor at one point but it was so long ago. Breast cancer came first and then it added all the other medical problem along with it.

Wishing you the best in controlling another beast as they say here. Just as lethal too.

Please let me know how you are doing. Up to now, I never heard of bp going so high.

Best,

Doris

CypressCynthia

SIROD said:

Blood Pressure Medication
Just came out of the hospital after a stay of 4 days for a kidney stone that has been showing up in ct scan for years. It suddenly decided to move on. Very painful but, it did pass. While there, my blood pressure went even higher than yours listed here. I am already using an ARB and left with another prescription to add and this one is an alpha and a beta. I don't know what it all means.

They had a devil of a time with me. Every time they added bp meds in the IV, the bp would drop. Then shoot up again an hour later. Vomiting, headaches were just the few things that made me miserable.

One arm can't be used. IV in the good arm and veins are practically non existing. Blood pressure was taken on my one good ankle, the other one is in bad shape with PTTD. I am not an easy case.

I hope it squares off soon. At least the side effects have gone. It's awful to have so many other medical issues when bc is enough to drive you nuts.

I might have taken an ACE inhibitor at one point but it was so long ago. Breast cancer came first and then it added all the other medical problem along with it.

Wishing you the best in controlling another beast as they say here. Just as lethal too.

Please let me know how you are doing. Up to now, I never heard of bp going so high.

Best,

Doris

Doris, I am so sorry to hear
Doris, I am so sorry to hear of your recent problems. Maybe the pain was making your bp more difficult to control? I have the same problem with veins. Every procedure they start an IV in a small vein, knock me out, and put in a jugular. I guess all of the years (and treatments) that we old timers have survived take a toll on our veins. Hope you are feeling better.

DianeBC

SIROD said:

Blood Pressure Medication
Just came out of the hospital after a stay of 4 days for a kidney stone that has been showing up in ct scan for years. It suddenly decided to move on. Very painful but, it did pass. While there, my blood pressure went even higher than yours listed here. I am already using an ARB and left with another prescription to add and this one is an alpha and a beta. I don't know what it all means.

They had a devil of a time with me. Every time they added bp meds in the IV, the bp would drop. Then shoot up again an hour later. Vomiting, headaches were just the few things that made me miserable.

One arm can't be used. IV in the good arm and veins are practically non existing. Blood pressure was taken on my one good ankle, the other one is in bad shape with PTTD. I am not an easy case.

I hope it squares off soon. At least the side effects have gone. It's awful to have so many other medical issues when bc is enough to drive you nuts.

I might have taken an ACE inhibitor at one point but it was so long ago. Breast cancer came first and then it added all the other medical problem along with it.

Wishing you the best in controlling another beast as they say here. Just as lethal too.

Please let me know how you are doing. Up to now, I never heard of bp going so high.

Best,

Doris

So sorry to read Doris that
So sorry to read Doris that you've been in the hospital and that you had such a rough time of it. Please keep us updated on how you are Doris.

And, I hope that you can get your bp under control Jamie. That is dangerously high.


Hugs and prayers to you both,

Diane

jamiegww

SIROD said:

Blood Pressure Medication
Just came out of the hospital after a stay of 4 days for a kidney stone that has been showing up in ct scan for years. It suddenly decided to move on. Very painful but, it did pass. While there, my blood pressure went even higher than yours listed here. I am already using an ARB and left with another prescription to add and this one is an alpha and a beta. I don't know what it all means.

They had a devil of a time with me. Every time they added bp meds in the IV, the bp would drop. Then shoot up again an hour later. Vomiting, headaches were just the few things that made me miserable.

One arm can't be used. IV in the good arm and veins are practically non existing. Blood pressure was taken on my one good ankle, the other one is in bad shape with PTTD. I am not an easy case.

I hope it squares off soon. At least the side effects have gone. It's awful to have so many other medical issues when bc is enough to drive you nuts.

I might have taken an ACE inhibitor at one point but it was so long ago. Breast cancer came first and then it added all the other medical problem along with it.

Wishing you the best in controlling another beast as they say here. Just as lethal too.

Please let me know how you are doing. Up to now, I never heard of bp going so high.

Best,

Doris

Doris
I'm so sorry you had to be hospitalized for your kidney stone. I remember being "sick as a dog" with one many years ago. It was treated with lithotripsy and I stopped feeling sick but spent about three months after that feeling like I needed to pee until all the pieces finally passed. I've had several stones since then and I still laugh about the one that passed when I was peeing in a cup at the doctor's office. I hope you don't get any more of those nasty stones and hopefully your blood pressure has calmed down now.

HUGS!!!
Jamie

SIROD

CypressCynthia said:

Doris, I am so sorry to hear
Doris, I am so sorry to hear of your recent problems. Maybe the pain was making your bp more difficult to control? I have the same problem with veins. Every procedure they start an IV in a small vein, knock me out, and put in a jugular. I guess all of the years (and treatments) that we old timers have survived take a toll on our veins. Hope you are feeling better.

Veins, Drug Shortages and etc.
Hi CC,

Hope you had a great trip to Disney World. What a lovely photo of you and your daughter. She looks just like you.

After the stone pass, the bp stayed high and the vomiting was relentless. Anti nausea drugs do not work on me very well. With the drug shortages and the fact I am allergic to Compazine, made it difficult to find a drug that worked. Most of what they tried didn't work. I began to refuse them. Eventually I was able to keep something down but, I am still not eating much today.

This is why hormonal therapy is the only type of treatment I will use for my type of cancer. Forget chemotherapy as anti nausea drugs won't work. I tried them all the first time around. Only Marinol worked. It knocked me out. Didn't like it at all.

My veins are a real problem. I have been on Methotrexate for years for my uveitis. Can't use a target drug do to the mets. They schedule a blood test every 4 weeks. I bargained with the oncologist who does know this drug that I wanted 6 weeks between blood tests, not 4. No more monthly test. My veins are small, go into hiding and am known as a real hard stick. No one wants to do me.

CC, I would not like them to put it in a jugular. I have had picc lines put in, is that the same thing? I do hate the vein business. If they listen to me, they will find a vein. I know the procedure and what it takes and where they are hiding. They have used those new devices on me to find veins. A device that shows your veins under a red light.

Usually I recover fast.

Best to you,

Doris

SIROD

DianeBC said:

So sorry to read Doris that
So sorry to read Doris that you've been in the hospital and that you had such a rough time of it. Please keep us updated on how you are Doris.

And, I hope that you can get your bp under control Jamie. That is dangerously high.


Hugs and prayers to you both,

Diane

Exhausted by a small stone, who would have guessed?
Thank you Diane. The stone has been there for years, fine time to decide it wanted a life outside of me. I do hope never to experience stones again.

Exhausted is what I am, expect to bounce back quickly.

Best,

Doris

Megan M

Gabe N Abby Mom said:

It took me three tries to
It took me three tries to find the right BP medication. We finally landed on a beta blocker. There is some research that suggests beta blockers might inhibit the spread of breast cancer.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/235349.php

If you google 'beta blockers and breast cancer' you'll find lots of other articles as well. Although I have to stress the words 'suggest' and 'might' it was enough to make me feel more comfortable about taking the BP meds.

I hope this helps, because you do really need to get that BP under control. You didn't fight your cancer so long and hard to loose quality of life to a stroke.

Hugs,

Linda

I know that high blood
I know that high blood pressure is very dangerous, so, I hope that you can get yours down Jamie.


Hugs, Megan

CypressCynthia

SIROD said:

Veins, Drug Shortages and etc.
Hi CC,

Hope you had a great trip to Disney World. What a lovely photo of you and your daughter. She looks just like you.

After the stone pass, the bp stayed high and the vomiting was relentless. Anti nausea drugs do not work on me very well. With the drug shortages and the fact I am allergic to Compazine, made it difficult to find a drug that worked. Most of what they tried didn't work. I began to refuse them. Eventually I was able to keep something down but, I am still not eating much today.

This is why hormonal therapy is the only type of treatment I will use for my type of cancer. Forget chemotherapy as anti nausea drugs won't work. I tried them all the first time around. Only Marinol worked. It knocked me out. Didn't like it at all.

My veins are a real problem. I have been on Methotrexate for years for my uveitis. Can't use a target drug do to the mets. They schedule a blood test every 4 weeks. I bargained with the oncologist who does know this drug that I wanted 6 weeks between blood tests, not 4. No more monthly test. My veins are small, go into hiding and am known as a real hard stick. No one wants to do me.

CC, I would not like them to put it in a jugular. I have had picc lines put in, is that the same thing? I do hate the vein business. If they listen to me, they will find a vein. I know the procedure and what it takes and where they are hiding. They have used those new devices on me to find veins. A device that shows your veins under a red light.

Usually I recover fast.

Best to you,

Doris

Lol, that is not my
Lol, that is not my daughter! That is me on the right and Linpsu on the left. We got together at the Moroccan attraction in Epcot. Maybve all of us cancer survivors start to look alike? :-)

CypressCynthia

CypressCynthia said:

Lol, that is not my
Lol, that is not my daughter! That is me on the right and Linpsu on the left. We got together at the Moroccan attraction in Epcot. Maybve all of us cancer survivors start to look alike? :-)

PS
The jugular is just a large vein. On rare occasions, we use it in the NICU. I am not especially fond of having a line in my jugular but, the few veins that are left are scarred and tend to not last. the jugular doesn't hurt at all, but it makes it a little hard to turn your head.

SIROD

CypressCynthia said:

Lol, that is not my
Lol, that is not my daughter! That is me on the right and Linpsu on the left. We got together at the Moroccan attraction in Epcot. Maybve all of us cancer survivors start to look alike? :-)

You and Linpsu
do look alike. They say we all have doubles.

I am 100% certain that if I stood near you and Linpsu, I would not be taken as a family member.

Do remember a post where you met another member of the board. I am glad that you had a chance to do so.

Best,

Doris

SIROD

CypressCynthia said:

PS
The jugular is just a large vein. On rare occasions, we use it in the NICU. I am not especially fond of having a line in my jugular but, the few veins that are left are scarred and tend to not last. the jugular doesn't hurt at all, but it makes it a little hard to turn your head.

Off the Merry Go Round and wanting to feel well...
I know where the jugular is as they have thought me how to take my pulse. CC, I have to have another blood test on Monday. They have a black & blue bruise on my hand where they sometimes take it. My arm area where it is taken is bruised also. It's going to be awful.

My oncologist wanted a blood test on Wednesday, a week before my scan.
My internist wants a blood test on Monday, I suppose because of the high readings on my blood pressure.

One blood test will do for both.

Why would I need one for the internist? They did draw blood numerous times while I was in hospital.

Not enough to worry about the lungs, lining, rib mets, now I have to worry about my blood pressure and etc.!

I want off the merry go round, I want to feel good and I'm sick of this whole thing. I've been on to long and don't need any more lethal diseases. I guess that I'm down in the dumps, big time.

Doris