Letrozole 2.5mg

[Honeystride]

Hi ! New poster so please be kind. I’m 3 years post BC. I was prescribed Tamoxifen which I took for 2 years & then stopped as the lack of sleep was making QoL awful.
Since then I’ve had an oophorectomy & at my 3 year cancerversary the Onc prescribed AI ‘s - Letrozole 2.5mg.

my question is side effects- I’m one week in and the headache & pins and needles are hard going. Does it calm down at all???

ax

I’ve just listened to episode 68 How to Navigate Tamoxifen and Aromatase Inhibitors of Dani Binnington’s Menopause and Cancer podcast. She’s talking to a breast cancer speciality oncologist. She has a comprehensive understanding of the worries and concerns of taking hormone therapy, explains the importance of understanding your individual risk of recurrence of cancer in being able to make an informed decision about taking it.

I did ask for my individual risk of recurrence but I was told it wasn’t possible to give it to me. Not sure why when I had an Onco Type score.

If you have breast cancer, have you seen the Predict calculator? You enter as much information as you have about you and your cancer and it helps summarise outcomes.

Predict Breast

Apologies if you've already seen this; I found it helpful when looking at ongoing treatment options.

@HellonHeels Thanks, I did manage to do this after listening to another Dani Binnington podcast yesterday.

My risk of recurrence at 10 years is 1.2% less with radiotherapy according to Predict 3. Radiotherapy was explained as an ‘insurance policy’ for if you can’t tolerate Letrozole before my planning scan. We all have different ‘appetites for risk’ as patients and as doctors according to the podcast. So for some, going without radiotherapy and or Letrozole is a risk worth taking. I think I would have chosen both, but it might help if Predict was part of the informed consent process.

Hellooo all - firstly thankyou all for sharing your story with me. Letrozole side effects have calmed down & I was feeling pretty chuffed to have an AI that worked & allowed me to sleep.

For context, I have a DH who refuses to go to the doctor EVER. Why don’t men practise self care the way we do? Answers on a post card!!!!

In my quest to keep my DH healthy I recently purchased some of the tests-at-home from Rezure. The diabetes one - “look I said how easy it is - just a little prick of the finger - & you can relax in the knowledge that you don’t have diabetes. Why don’t I take it first” I said.

Yes, you’ve guessed it- his result was healthy - mine showed I have diabetes. Wierdly I’ve been craving sweet things since I started taking Letrozole.

WTAF - has anyone heard of Letrozole leading to diabetes ??? I will call Docters first thing ofcourse

@Honeystride
I know that for me who have prostate cancer and take medication to block their testosterone, they have an increased risk of developing type2 diabetes. So it would not surprise me if women also have similar risks when taken estrogen blockers.
Blocking a person’s natural hormones is not without risk because they are some important for bodily functions.

I’ve been taking Letrazole for about 18 months now. I hate it, weight gain , severe joint pain, increased BP and increased cholesterol so on more tablets to control those. I started taking Mounjaro at Christmas, private prescription through Asda, for the weight gain. Felt better than I have done since starting Letrazole, it significantly improved all my symptoms as well as some slow weight loss. I wonder now if I was also diabetic? However 2 weeks ago my prescription of Letrazole was brand Accord. My joint pain has come back with a vengeance and I’m sure it’s the brand that doesn’t suit but pharmacies won’t help, just say they have to give me whatever they get in a delivery. Seriously thinking about coming off both Mounjaro ( due to cost) and Letrazole as the side effects are again unbearable.

Hi I took letrozole prior to surgery and it shrunk my lump so I'm stuck on it for a while. I dealt with the symptoms one at a time and had a great consultant who basically told me not to be a hero and to take stuff. So to date I take vitamins magnesium glycanate and sertraline. Yes I have joint pain but the rest is okay. I do tonnes of exercise I would recommend aqua aerobics lots of movement and mobility with no impact definitely always feel better for a day or two after.

Gosh - I haven’t kept track of which brand of letrazole I’m taking. Is your oncologist okay with you taking Mountjaro?

Joining in with interest.

on my second packet

The fatigue is relentless, and the brain fogginess is not good either ,but I do seem to be free of a lot of The other side-effects others are mentioning like bone and joint pain, et cetera.

I do feel that I am gaining weight, but that might just be simply because I’m not moving so much as I normally would be. I need to take that into consideration with my food intake.

I was considering not taking it for a little while to see whether it is the cause of the fatigue and I’m waiting for my oncologist to come back and discuss it with me further

I am currently looking into improving my health through diet as my Next a lot of tablets of which I can’t remember their name that I’m due to start in June will knock my white blood cells and immune system, apparently.

5 1/2 years down, 4 1/2 to go. I take Femara brand of letrozole and have been told I absolutely can’t stop. I piled on weight (though some of that was probably “life is too short not to eat the pasta” ) and can’t get rid of it but my main issue is the relentless fatigue. I am never not feeling exhausted. My peripheral neuropathy has caused major issues with my feet recently although that was probably caused by the chemo rather than the femara and I have Lymphodema that needs regular management. Breast cancer really is the gift that doesn’t stop giving though fortunately my regular bone density scans are good so far (easy to access and free here).

May I ask everyone when you take your letrozole?

I had been been taking it at night just before going to bed, but last night I forgot it and took it this morning. It seems a weird coincidence that I feel a lot better today and so far at 4 pm haven’t felt a drastic amount of fatigue.

I take mine when I get up in the morning - usually between 8am and 9am. I haven't been suffering from fatigue during the day, although I'm definitely sleeping for longer through the night and often struggle to get up in the morning.

Reading all these comments makes me count my blessings. I’ve been on Letrazole for four years, with one more to go, and the only side effects I’ve had are thinning hair and flaking nails.

Reading with interest as I started taking Letrazole on Monday.

I’ve been on Letrozole for nearly 7 weeks now. Had no issues with Cipla but halfway through a box of Glenmark’s and I noticed the difference almost immediately. Aching shoulder and knee joints in particular and a mild red rash around my right upper arm.

I can still do my 5k runs without any joint pain but am finding my 12 hour shifts in work really tough. Also really difficult to be treated as though I am back to normal now by everyone and a lack of willingness to listen when I try to explain that the most difficult part is the challenges of living on hormone therapy instead of HRT.

I might have to consider a change of job. Doing all I can with diet and exercise to lose fat and gain muscle to support my joints but even that seems to come with risks.

That’s great!

Do you have any advice for what has helped you cope with it so well?

Thanks. I think I’ll see how I get on taking it in the mornings.

I am looking into diet and nutrition in a huge way now as I want to be well for my next white blood cell reducing tablets.

I found the BBC has a few recipes for those with immune issues. The BBC’s Just One Thing has a few programmes I have found interesting, eating oily fish, chocolate, and the easy exercise ones in particular.

I’d really like to find menu plans with recipes for meals that focus on nutrient rich meals for cancer patients. I got Dominique Ludwig’s book No nonsense nutrition but haven’t started it yet but from a flick through I think it’s going to be helpful.

On the subject of timing of Letrozole, I forgot to take it last night. I slept soundly and joints felt better this morning.

So going to continue with mornings to see if it helps. I’m hoping that joints will have less chance to stiffen up with all the daytime movement, hydration etc.

On letrozole. Only SE I get is a very dry flaky itchy scalp that’s driving me insane now. Nothing I’ve tried will help.

This is my second day of taking it in the morning. I actually feel like I have less brain fog.

I’m not completely convinced my brain fog is letrazole and have been upping my oily fish consumption quite a lot.

I did a cancer nutrition session recently, which was very interesting and it said that we need more than average nutrition to repair our bodies during the treatment of cancers

So where the BBC just one thing program regarding eating oily fresh recommended it as being three times a week I am trying to consume it more.

I’m wondering if poor nutrition contributed to breast cancer occurring. I was doing a lot of exercise but not fuelling adequately. I’m logging everything on my fitness pal to keep track of it now and eating double the amount of protein.

Ferritin levels were very low after breast cancer and radiotherapy so I’m taking Ferrous Fumerate. With the changes I’ve made my hair is thickening back up.

I’ll listen to the just one thing episode. Clare Mosley puts lots of recipes on her instagram page.

Please don’t blame yourself. Breast cancer is down to a single random mutation that evades the immune systems normal defence mechanism. Having spent a lot of time on a support forum, the majority of posters are confused how, despite a healthy lifestyle , they have ended up with breast cancer. Obesity and alcohol are risk factors but not everyone who is obese or drinks alcohol will develop breast cancer.

There is a lot of misinformation about diet and other factors increasing your risk but it it is a random event and just bad luck. The only thing that positively increases you risk of bc is having the gene mutations. Even then it doesn’t guarantee you will have bc.

The biggest risk factor is being a woman and being exposed to estrogen for a long time. BC risk is increased slightly in women who start their periods early and / have a late menopause.

My consultant bc surgeon told me (after tests) that my bc (third different cancer) was just because I was a woman (and unlucky). Never ever thought I’d be doing cancer treatment again.

Reading with interest. I’ve been on tamoxifen for 5.5 years with a target time of 7 years but had to have hysteroscopy under GA in November because of significant womb thickening and polyps. Nobody told me I should change meds and here I am having to have the same procedure yet again. Specialist BCN has told me to stop taking the tamoxifen and has arranged an appointment with the oncologist. She thinks I’ll be switched to Letrozole. Reading this thread has made me quite nervous about it but has also given me lots of information I wouldn’t have thought to ask for. I’ve only got another 18 months or so on meds but I don’t want them to be miserable. I know some women who have been fine on anastrazole so I will ask about that. It’s the gift that keeps on giving 😒

@Crwysmam Thanks for the explanation. Are you a healthcare professional? You sound knowledgeable.

Apart from oestrogen exposure, stress seems to be a common factor in people who I’ve spoken to.