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Has anyone stopped anatrozole because of carpal tunnel symptoms??

Posted by ldh19 @ldh19, Jun 1, 2023

I have been taking anatrozole for 4yr and 2 months. I started having carpal tunnel symptoms. it was better worse and worse. I called my Dr .He said go off of it for 2 wks and see if it gets better. Its been 4 days and the pain is 90% better. It makes me nervous because I need to take it a t least 7 years by my BCindex . I was stage1 Invasive ductal carcinoma estrogen positive Her2 neg. Oncotype was 11.

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tamrus | @tamrus | 5 days ago

I had terrible trigger finger problems on Letrozole. I tried several different drugs over the years and finally quit after 7 years (and 3 finger surgeries).

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plumeria3 | @plumeria3 | 4 days ago
In reply to @lnewnam "I can connect with you on this. I pray that this works for you. I had..." + (show)
@lnewnam

I can connect with you on this. I pray that this works for you. I had stage one, estrogen fed, caught early. Lumpectomy and 15 rounds of radiation. Symptom of fatigue and muscle pain but certainly bearable. At 20 month, I started getting pain in my toes and the ball of my foot. Had many tests and ended up with a diagnosis of neuropathy which is pretty grim. I decided to try and find the cause which brought me here. My oncologist said I could stop Anastrozole for 3o days. The thought of that made me nervous. After 30 days, I told her I didn't feel much difference. I started back and realized it was a major difference. Fatigue and foot pain came back even worse. I have a visit scheduled. I assume it's going to be a choice of a different medicine or rolling the dice and not taking any. Then I will be anxious every day. I really relate with your last couple of sentences. Did your doctor make you feel good about your decision? Thank you!

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My oncologist has always tried to be as supportive so this is why we tried the various meds first and even a lower dose of Tamoxifen. But it seems my body just did not tolerate these drugs very well. I really tried to give it my best but when I could no longer move around as much without significant pain every day it made me rethink another 3 years of this as well as the permanent damage it could be causing. He explained that these drugs do have this effect on some women causing them to stop earlier. So yes, I guess we can't have it all. Of course, the fear of recurrence will always be in the back of my mind but even taking the drugs does not guarantee non recurrence. So, I will still see the oncologist for checkups every 4-6 months and my breast surgeon yearly for exams. I am hoping this will help to catch things should they arise. Thanks for the prayers. I am thankful that the muscle/tendon pains from the medications have subsided so I can now get back to exercising more normally. Best wishes to you too.

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eustal1 | @eustal1 | 3 days ago

How long can I take Anestrozole?

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1 reply
Mentor
Miriam, Volunteer Mentor | @mir123 | 3 days ago
In reply to @eustal1 "How long can I take Anestrozole?" + (show)
@eustal1

How long can I take Anestrozole?

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Has it been prescribed for you? Can you tell us a bit more about your situation? Without side effects, you should be able take it for as long as your oncologist thinks it will be useful. I gather the range is often 5-10 years. What motivates you to ask?

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BeBold | @bebold | 1 day ago
In reply to @plumeria3 "I was diagnosed with Stage 1a Invasive ductal ER+, HER2- in late 2022. I did bilateral..." + (show)
@plumeria3

I was diagnosed with Stage 1a Invasive ductal ER+, HER2- in late 2022. I did bilateral mastectomy in early 2023 and then started Anastrozole shortly after. After about 16 months I started to get severe tendonitis- Dequervain's in my left arm as well as carpal tunnel in both arms. I went to an orthopedic doctor to get treated and stopped the Anastrozole. My oncologist suggested trying Letrozole after a couple weeks break from Anastrozole which made things even worse. So, I took a couple months break from the meds. In the meantime, I got cortisone shot for Dequervain's and wore arm braces for carpal tunnel. The pains went away during the 2-3 months break. The oncologist said we could try Tamoxifen but after 5 months on this I got the worse calf cramps such that I could barely walk at times so I have now stopped all endocrine therapy and hoping for the best. I was on the Endocrine therapy for 2.5 years, so short of the 5 recommended. My Breast Cancer Index showed I would not benefit from an additional 5 years of Endocrine therapy and my risk of distant recurrence was 3.2% so I can only pray recurrence will stay away and do other things like eat healthy, exercise regularly and watch stress. I felt that if I suffered through this pain it would do irreversible damage to my muscles and bones, let alone have a bad quality of life as I could not do my daily activities.

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Hm. You had bilateral stage 1a and still were encouraged to take it. Hard to hear. I find out this afternoon if its negative or positive. My gene testing was done day one with a scare 5 years ago. My sister and cousin had br ca, other cousin died youngish with ovarian. Other side of family, lots of ovarian. Dr. is concerned about family history. But I was thinking if i just had a double, I woukdnt need anything else. I had a Complete hyst with ovaries 20+ year ago. I was hoping i could avoid radiation and chemo. Each dr and cancer is different. Thanks for sharing.

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1 reply
plumeria3 | @plumeria3 | 1 day ago
In reply to @bebold "Hm. You had bilateral stage 1a and still were encouraged to take it. Hard to hear...." + (show)
@bebold

Hm. You had bilateral stage 1a and still were encouraged to take it. Hard to hear. I find out this afternoon if its negative or positive. My gene testing was done day one with a scare 5 years ago. My sister and cousin had br ca, other cousin died youngish with ovarian. Other side of family, lots of ovarian. Dr. is concerned about family history. But I was thinking if i just had a double, I woukdnt need anything else. I had a Complete hyst with ovaries 20+ year ago. I was hoping i could avoid radiation and chemo. Each dr and cancer is different. Thanks for sharing.

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I believe for any invasive ductal Estrogen driven breast cancer its standard that some sort of endocrine therapy (anti-estrogen medication) is prescribed unless you have other factors like HER2 positive. I was fortunate to not have to do radiation or chemo so the endocrine therapy was the recommended treatment besides the surgery. I pray for the best outcome for you as I truly understand how nerve wracking waiting for results can be. Best wishes.

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