I need help again!!!!

babebussie
babebussie Member Posts: 150
edited March 2014 in Breast Cancer #1
Hello sisters, well i'm on my last round of taxoter the 5th of august and the dr.told me that i may be on tamoxifen for 5yrs. I'd like to know what this pill is and how can it help me. My markers are GREAT and the dr.is very pleased with my progress. All blood counts are normal and i'm going back to work finally July 28th.
Plz advise!

Comments

  • chenheart
    chenheart Member Posts: 5,159
    #2
    WHOOOO-HOOOOO!!!! Congrats on your good news!

    We are generally prescribed either Tamoxifen or Arimidex ( I take Arimidex) for 5 years post treatment depending on the type of cancer we had. Mine was Estrogen Positive, and the one tiny Arimidex pill I take pill I take every morning effectively blocks any estrogen my cancer may want to "feed" on and decide to grow grow again! It is generally for Post-Menopausal women~ which I am.

    Tamoxifen does the same thing for different reasons~ hey Tamox users~ help our sister out here! :-)

    I am just finishing up 5 years of Arimidex, and so far NO recurrence!

    Hugs,
    Claudia
  • LindaR48
    LindaR48 Member Posts: 26
    #3
    Congrats on finishing chemo!!! I didn't have chemo but I have been on tomoxifen since Nov 2007. The most annoying se I have had are hor flashes. Like Claudia said it is an estrogen blocker. It stops cancer cells from feeding off estrogen. According to my onc it reduces the chances of a recurrance by about 50%. If you only had surgery on one breast, it also reduces the chance of getting it in the other breast. My experience is the se are manageable but everybody reacts differently. After chemo it should be no problem.
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    #4
    I took tamoxifen for seven years. I had 2 breast cancers less than 2 years apart so I suppose that was why my onco kept me on it longer.
    I had no serious side effects. However, I did experience menopause during those years, which would probably have happened anyway, as I was of THAT age. But even my menopausal symptoms were fairly mild. Can't say for sure whether that was a result of the drug or not but I was just happy to get through the 'change' easier than expected considering everything else I had just endured.
    Good luck with that and congrats on your great progress.
  • seof
    seof Member Posts: 819 Member
    #5
    It sounds like you have some good answers from folks who know more than I do. I have no experience with that drug, but you can go to chemocare.com to look up info on drugs and their uses and side effects.

    Congratulations on reaching your stage in the journey...you have come a long way! seof
  • babebussie
    babebussie Member Posts: 150
    #6
    Thank you all for the support and help you have given me since i joined the site. These past few months have been full of dr.appts upon dr.appts, over and over again. I have a lot to be thankful for and i learned alot from this illness. Staying positive is the key to living a good life with cancer. Fighting is a must and remaining in control is a big plus. God is good! After my last treatment on Aug 5th and i start the tamoxifen for 5yrs i know i'll be starting a new journey but at least the worst part (chemo) is over. The dr.hasnt mentioned radiation, although she talked about it before but hasnt brought it back up and neither have i. Do i worry, hell yeah i worry. I dont want this beast to knock on my door again and i know everytime i have to take a blood test my heart will skip a beat fearing that my markers will be high again and the beast will say, it's me!!! I'm home!! I dont ever want to go through this again but like i know god he will step back in and take the reins and say i got this.
    I'll keep my sisters posted as to my last chemo drip and the start of the pill. So far so good!
    I pray for you all as well as myself everyday. Hang in there sisters because it'll only get better.

    God bless!
  • cabbott
    cabbott Member Posts: 1,039 Member
    #7
    babebussie said:

    Thank you all for the support and help you have given me since i joined the site. These past few months have been full of dr.appts upon dr.appts, over and over again. I have a lot to be thankful for and i learned alot from this illness. Staying positive is the key to living a good life with cancer. Fighting is a must and remaining in control is a big plus. God is good! After my last treatment on Aug 5th and i start the tamoxifen for 5yrs i know i'll be starting a new journey but at least the worst part (chemo) is over. The dr.hasnt mentioned radiation, although she talked about it before but hasnt brought it back up and neither have i. Do i worry, hell yeah i worry. I dont want this beast to knock on my door again and i know everytime i have to take a blood test my heart will skip a beat fearing that my markers will be high again and the beast will say, it's me!!! I'm home!! I dont ever want to go through this again but like i know god he will step back in and take the reins and say i got this.
    I'll keep my sisters posted as to my last chemo drip and the start of the pill. So far so good!
    I pray for you all as well as myself everyday. Hang in there sisters because it'll only get better.

    God bless!

    Tamoxifen is a piece of cake next to chemo. The gyn needs to keep an eye on your uterus, so tell him or her if you have any abnormal bleeding. I have heard that if you do experience hot flashes, that means you respond to tamoxifen more than if you don't. So I guess even hot flashes have a silver lining! Good luck!

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