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Zometa Infusions — your experience?
Breast Cancer | Last Active: Nov 12 11:33am | Replies (41)Comment receiving replies
Wow...so many different experiences with Reclast, Zometa, etc. and awful side effects!
I am 4 months out from Anastrozole and already have osteopenia and ongoing-never ending lower back pain that is quite painful. Not too mention the daily headaches.
I will be seeing my new breast oncologist soon. And wonder what she will advise?
So concerned about reading all of the side effects from medications to protect our bones.
Fractures, jaw necrosis, tooth moving/problems, leg issues & unable to work, flu symptoms, ongoing low grade fever, etc. etc.
It is all very scary to me. I know I am not alone. But I don't want osteoporosis!
It's very confusing to a recent breast cancer diagnosis. Not sure what direction to take.
Anyone have thoughts? So kindly appreciated.
What a battle we must fight for our quality of life - post cancer diagnosis!
Blessings to all!
Replies to "Wow...so many different experiences with Reclast, Zometa, etc. and awful side effects! I am 4 months..."
@briarrose
Hi,
I wish before my Zometa infusion, my oncologist had used the Predict tool to compare survivor statistics for treatment versus no treatment after surgery .It’s free, on line, and highly regarded. I only learned about it on this site. It appears for me preventative treatment will not appreciably affect my chances of survival 10 or 15 years hence. I’m 75. I’m going to doublecheck this with my oncologist. It appears Zometa may reduce the likelihood of recurrence by a few percentage points but not my likelihood of surviving. Given the very serious side effects of treatment and quality of life issues, I think this is important to discuss with your oncologist.
Most of us are given recurrence statistics but not survivor statistics. I think if given the stats, one could make an informed decision. If these treatments would give us many more years of life, we could accept the trade-off of pain and discomfort more stoically. And if treatment appeared not to make a difference, we could forgo it more comfortably.
Good luck making your decision.
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@briarrose