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

All my cancers followed a huge amount of stress. Cancers 1 and 2 job stress, cancer 3 followed the loss of my husband after a good few years battling with leukaemia.

I just thankful it waited until he’d passed before it was found. I don’t think I would have coped with both of us having cancer.

I am convinced mine was triggered by long term severe stress of an absolutely horrific divorce following my husband’s affair and then the subsequent abuse I got from him and OW. I was in flight or fight mode for several years alongside bringing up an ND little boy alone. I absolutely refuse to be stressed now. I let everything wash over me. I do a lot of exercise which is great for my mental health. I think stress is so dangerous.

From the conversations I’ve had with people, Intense stress in the run up to a cancer diagnosis seems to be an experience we all seem to share.

On the plus side though, I seem to be genuinely unbothered by all the small things that used to upset or worry me. I don’t feel the need to justify myself as much. It’s quite freeing.

This discussion around stress has resonance for me. I had huge stress from 2020 when my husband died violently, through 2021 when I was axed from my job, evicted from my flat and had to deal with sale of marital home and moving to another city. Diagnosed 18 months later.

Food for thought. But like @Dancethroughtherain I am definitely in the not being bothered by things or just no longer giving a fuck. Even going through cancer treatment, my thought was this was not the worst thing I'd been through.

Solidarity to everyone dealing with the shitshow

I was on Tamoxifen for 3 years, had an oopherectomy and then went onto Anastrazole. About a year ago, when i was 9 years post diagnosis, I asked to switch to Letrozole as it seemed like everyone else was on this rather than Anastrazole. Within about 2 months I had aches and pains in my knees, hips, back. I switched back to Anastrazole and the pains have gone. I would try the Letrozole and see. You can always switch to Anastrazole if the side effects are too bad.

@HellonHeelsYour comment about treatment not being the worst thing really reasonated with me as I’ve said the same having experienced extreme relentless stress over a period of years. It’s incredible the effect it can have and I too have a “fuck it” approach now. I’m sorry you had such an horrific time 💐

We're in the fuck it zone together. Good to have company

Also, my thoughts too that it wasn’t the worst thing I’d been through in the run up to it. (How can you begin to explain that to anyone?!?).

I remember the sense of relief when I met the consultant for the first time. She was a woman on a mission who came storming into the room, seemingly to square up to what she had seen on my mammogram.

I thought, finally I’ve got someone fierce in my corner standing up for me.

Just had the news that my latest CT scan shows that the cancer is still shrinking, so the tablets are doing the trick and I'll happily keep on taking them!

My views on life changed with each cancer diagnosis. I just can’t be bothered with anyone who wants a drama. I only do things I want to these days. Cancer is drama enough and I follow the Sarah Knight theory of spending my f*cks wisely - it’s on YouTube if you want a laugh 💐

@Honeystride I was taking Letrozole at bedtime but joint aches were quite bad. For a tablet that causes arthralgia and stiffness, it doesn’t make sense to me to take it before a period of inactivity.
So, I take it in the morning now, I’m on the go all day and drink a good 3L of water to hopefully keep my joints hydrated.
It’s a big improvement and I’m sleeping better.

@Dancethroughtherain i’ve just switched to the morning this last week too. Yesterday I felt the best I felt since Christmas. I’ve had two good days previously. I’ve woken up this morning feeling quite good as well, so I’m hoping it’s going to carry on.

The only thing that I’m doing differently as well as I’m pushing five portions of oily fish into my diet in a week as well which I’m not sure is part of the helping process but I’ve definitely got much less foggy brain

@Thirdtimeunlucky2025 It’s great to know that there seems to be a way to manage being on Letrozole. Not that it’s easy, but I feel more in control of it instead of it being in control of me, and how I feel.

Also trying to get the oily fish in too and keeping an eye on meeting macronutrient goals in my fitness pal.

It’s giving me a lot more energy and I’m not gaining weight.

AIs cause increased amount of synovial fluid within the joint space which is thought to exacerbate the joint pain. A recent study showed that taking diuretics reduced the pain in up to 80% of the study subjects.
I was taking diuretics when I started AI, after a drug review it was dropped from my prescriptions. After six months I was really struggling. I did a bit of research and came across the study. Had a chat with my GP, well had a chat with the surgery clinical pharmacist who was aware of the study and restarted the diuretic. I wasn’t too optimistic but it made a big difference.

Drinking 3L of water may actually be making your pain worse. It can also put strain on your kidneys which when you are taking a drug that can increase your blood pressure may not be ideal.

Fluid intake includes all the fluid in your diet from food and drink. Drinking 3L of water on top of normal dietary fluids is not healthy. It can cause hyper hydration that can put excessive strain on the cardiovascular system.

That’s interesting @Crwysmam, thanks for sharing your experience. So knee discomfort could be because of too much fluid around the joint, not too little.

I wear toes-to-knee compression sports socks in work and plenty of cushioning in my shoes but I think I’ll have to try compression tights.

Funnily enough, I can run 5k without any knee issues, but I think it’s the kind of movement that shifts any sluggish fluid away, compared with the ‘on your feet all day at work’ kind of moment.

Otherwise, I’ve no complaints, especially since altering the time of taking Letrozole to mornings. It’s very encouraging to hear that @P00hsticks says it’s shrinking her cancer.

I have a blood pressure monitor and I keep an eye on it alongside weight.

My hair feels like it’s stopped growing so quickly. Normally I have a cut every 5 weeks but I’ve cancelled it because it’s still fine. Anyone else had this on Letrozole?

@Thirdtimeunlucky2025 I had low ferritin after breast cancer and radiotherapy, so taking Ferrous Fumerate. Also eating better, the right amount of macros for age, activity etc, much more protein. My hair is thickening up and growing faster.

@Thirdtimeunlucky2025 My head hair is back to “normal” and I have it cut every 7-8 weeks but my gorgeous long eyelashes never reappeared, they are stumps now, and my eyebrows are skimpy though I recently started getting them tinted which helps. No underarm hair at all though which I take as a small win.

@Dancethroughtherain are you still taking letrozole in the morning?

I feel so much better this past week, but whether that’s down to the fact that radiotherapy is now just over two months down the line, or my last bone infusion was six weeks ago, but I can report that I almost feel back to normal most days which is a relief because I’ve been struggling pretty much since Christmas when I had the lumpectomy.

@Thirdtimeunlucky2025 yes, still taking it in the morning. It might be helping but it’s not evidence based. It might be helpful to find a pharmacist who’s willing to explain the half life of Letrozole. I think one dose peaks after 2 hours. However, I found an article saying that after a few months a constant level is maintained.

The fact that we’re both feeling better (glad things have improved!) might be more down to working on good nutrition, strength training etc. Homeostasis is my aim, as best as possible. When things are off balance (tired, stressed, hungry, caffeinated…) I have more hot flushes. I’m hoping that if I can achieve that it will support my body to cope better without oestrogen. I’m learning more than I would have since ‘new normal’.

Bit worried about the unknowns on bone and cardio health. Not sure specifically how much calcium is needed to maintain bone density on Letrozole. Not really sure how to support cardiovascular health with nutritional intervention when raised cholesterol is inevitable. I think it would help if a statin was prescribed automatically alongside Letrozole. Preventive measures rather than waiting for problems to arise.

@Dancethroughtherain i’m still feeling fairly well. Im on five so portions of oily fish a week but it is mainly salmon. Edited to say I am actually feeling the best I have since before the treatments started.

I take calcium tablets Adcal-D3 because I’m having bone infusions but in time would like to replace this with a nutritional intake through food. Might be worth you investigating if concerned about bone density health.

interesting about the half life of letrozole, I’ll ask next time I get a packet. 💐💐💐

I appreciate this thread is a few months old, but I've just come across it searching Letrozole.

I found a breast lump Aug 25, diagnosed Sep 25, lumpectomy end Oct 25 & radiotherapy x 15 Jan-Feb 26.
Started Letrozole mid Feb-26 and had very few side effects at first (found a post on MN 30/3 mentioning I'd been taking for 5 weeks and not feeling any side effects).
I'm now experiencing joint pain, especially after sitting for a while, and more fatigue than a couple of months ago.
I was originally taking it first thing, and have shifted to early evening. Hadn't thought anything about it, but am going to move it back to first thing and see if that helps.

I am also strength training 2 or 3 times a week (my radiotherapy clinic had a 24 session gym programme, which I did having never been in a gym before). Walking 30 mins daily (well, most days).
Am on the higher end of healthy BMI, and struggling to get my weight down but am very slowly doing so.

My DEXA scan was 29.8, so just into oestopenia.
I've also had a bone scan which shows some deterioration of my right lower spine (I had agonising hip pain for a few weeks), am awaiting an MRI follow-up on this.

Really interesting to read this thread.

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 DW was diagnosed with breast cancer and we were told that the cancer was "hormone sensitive". She was given Letrozole to suppress oestrogen and the worst side effect was increased anxiety.

It might be helpful to find a pharmacist who’s willing to explain the half life of Letrozole.

I am not a pharmacist but here are two references from reasonably sound sources that might help

bnf.nice.org.uk/drugs/letrozole/

www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2007/020726s014lbl.pdf

My DW was on 2 x Adcal D3 with Letrozole. A Dr mentioned in passing that she could get away with only 1 and get the rest of the calcium from her diet (sorry all my information is second hand from DW who was more concerned with other things at the time) Now she has yogurt almost daily - I try to make sure of it! Cheese has always been a favourite of hers. Milk on her porridge at breakfast time. What are the know side effects of AdCal anyone?