tamoxifen

[Ldonovan481]

I am about to start tamoxifen. Anything you’ve exsperienced? I had DCIS , lumpectomy , not sure I really need it. I do not deal well with side effects. Thank you!

[13plus]

Hi, I take it now, and have in the past too. No issues years ago. This time around I started to get calf muscle cramps at night but with a daily magnesium tablet and making sure I stretch them before I go to bed, all is good.

I just want to kindly point out that I think perhaps you joined into the wrong b.c. group for your stage of cancer? Sounds like you are just starting your journey and this group is for advanced cancer, so the early stage group would be more beneficial for you.

And I do recommend trying the tamoxifen because it is usually the least impactful of all the cancer drugs (IMO), and should greatly increase your chances of keeping the cancer at bay!

[Ldonovan481 in reply to 13plus]

I did not kow I was in the wrong place! Somehow I got here....can you tell me the right place? Thank you !

[13plus in reply to Ldonovan481]

I’m not sure because i only joined here after getting my metastatic diagnosis. I think if you search the site for breast cancer support then the different options should come up. Or go to to the top left - home page, and navigate through the menu from there

[13plus in reply to Ldonovan481]

Try and see if this link works. There are two groups I just found on this site. This one is the SHARE breast cancer community group

healthunlocked.com/share-br...

[Nocillo]

Took Tamoxifen for 2 1/2 years. No side effects at all.

[Dragonfly-Rider]

Research tamoxifen! It has caused liver cancer in many women.

[MettavivorDS]

It can also cause endometrial cancer later in life. This happened to my mother. She took tamoxifen for 5 years after stage 1 b.c. She had a lumpectomy and radiation. My Mom never had a recurrence of breast cancer, but had to go through treatment for endometrial cancer 20 years later. The good news is that the cure for endometrial cancer is a full hysterectomy and only 3 rounds of radiation. No other follow up meds.

I chose not to take tamoxifen after my own stage 1 b.c. The decision to not take it was complicated by other medications I was taking. The side effects of the tamoxifen scared me and I was ineligible at the time to take an AI drug. Despite the fact that my oncotype DX score was only 6, the cancer recurred in the bone 3 years later. I’ve been on hormone therapy drugs ever since.

[Totheriver]

I took Tamoxifen for 5 years and did not have a lot of side effects when I was first diagnosed in 2002 and after I had chemo and radiation.

[ClarenceO]

I took tamoxifen for 7 years. No side effects but I did develop endometrial cancer. During the hysterectomy, the surgeon discovered MBC.

[Bettybuckets]

Hi there! I found tsmoxifen to have no side effects whatsoever. Some women experience stiffness which can be managed with Motrin or Tylenol… well worth the trouble as you want to make every effort not to have a recurrence… unlikely but still that would be very bad news. I hope that helps. Not trying to scare you but you could be like me and have no outward issue so you should at least try it. Like most pre menopausal women at the time, I was on it for 5 years- and felt fearful when it was time to go off and onto Aromatase Inhibitor for the next 5 years.. but then those drugs also caused no side effects. Good luck and hope that you also sail through this part of your cancer journey.

[Lilywallytootsie]

You should take it, if your oncologist recommends it. It is recommended for most women with early stage breast cancer who are ER/PR positive. Blessings, Hannah

[Onedayatatime60]

Hope you find the right group

In the meantime regarding Tamoxifen. Google Dr Liz O'Riordan . She is a breast cancer surgeon who had breast cancer herself and a recurrence. She is on Twitter and did a whole segment all about Tamoxifen, benefits, side effects etc. (I did not watch it because I am not on that drug, but have followed her and watched some of her other videos. I tried to link the you tube video here but if it doesnt work I just Googled "Dr Liz O' Riorden Tamoxifen" and it was first search.

youtube.com/watch?v=AIaD16u...(Not working as expected?)