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Tamoxifen side effects are very worrying. Read these studies
Breast Cancer | Last Active: 1 day ago | Replies (21)Comment receiving replies
@7318
I initially was on Letrozole (AI) and after about 3 months experienced reflux, nausea and severe constipation that was so intractable I had to discontinue taking them. I tried other AIs and every time I wound up with the same unbearable GI distress. I felt I would rather risk the cancer recurring than live with such debilitating dysfunction. After a year my oncologist convinced me to try Tamoxifen at a very low dose- 5 mg. I tolerated it for about a month and then all of a sudden all the GI symptoms recurred with a vengeance. It has been almost two weeks since I stopped taking the drug, and I still am not back to normal, no matter what I am doing in terms of diet, herbs, supplements, laxatives, etc. Previously it took a few weeks for my system to regulate itself after discontinuing the hormone blocker, using all the above measures plus acupuncture. Has anyone who could not tolerate the hormone blockers found any alternative treatment to lower the risk of the cancer recurring?
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@antonina74 I'm sorry that you've been experiencing such challenging symptoms. I decided to take a holistic and alternative approach following my surgery. There are many wonderful alternatives and resources out there. A book by Dr. Michael Greger called 'How not to Die' has a whole section on breast cancer and is a good starting point. He has a load of free resources on his website too. It's called nutritionfacts.
For me I have adopted a Whole food plant based diet, daily aerobic exercise which can be brisk walking. Daily consumption of ground flaxseed and good organic soya products such as edamame, soy yoghurt/milk. Zero alcohol. Eating white mushrooms or take turkey tail supplements. Melatonin supplements and good bedtime routine. Melatonin has a similar action to tamoxifen (SERM).
Sulforaphane from cruciferous vegetables, broccoli seed sprouts and/or dried capsules - helps detox, aids programmed cell death in cancer cells but not healthy ones. Can potentially target cancer stem cells and aid in estrogen metabolism.
Anti angiogenic foods which are any with dark red and purple colours. These have been researched and help prevent tumours getting a blood supply (angiogenesis) - Look up the work of Dr. William Li.
Supporting liver detox either through diet and/or Calcium D-Glucarate will help clear unhealthy estrogen metabolites. A wholefood high fiber diet helps us clear the unhealthy estrogen metabolites through our gut because they can actually be reabsorbed there rather than being excreted, we definitely don't want that for ER+ cancers.
When your liver and gut break down estrogens, the resulting metabolites determine whether the process is healthy or potentially harmful. Some metabolites create cellular damage and increase risk of cancer. The Dutch Plus test can tell you your levels.
Cutting out meat, dairy, refined sugar, refined carbohydrates and processed foods.
Cleaning up chemicals from our lives as much as possible which includes even things like lavender oil. Many xenoestrogens disrupt our hormones so that's plastics, chemicals, certain natural compounds etc.
There's a reason our bodies became a host for cancer so if we change the internal terrain, we can make it less hospitable and reduce chance of recurrence. It's about taking ownership and making the changes in our lives.
You can research everything I've noted above, it's not fringe, it's researched and it all has an impact. I hope this helps and I wish you well on your journey.