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Recovery time after Anastrozole/aromatase inhibitors

Posted by annedenner @annedenner, Sep 20, 2025

Greetings Everyone,
I took Anastrozole for one year. I had severe arch/foot and leg pain that did not improve. I’ve been off the AI four months with slight improvement in these symptoms. Can anyone share their “recovery” experiences from AIs. What side effects did you have, did side effects resolve and if so how long did it take? Thank you!

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reflector75 | @reflector75 | Apr 9 5:58am
In reply to @dmr4ever "Thank you. This is very helpful. The quality of life vs recurrence issue is always on..." + (show)
Profile picture for dmr4ever @dmr4ever

Thank you. This is very helpful. The quality of life vs recurrence issue is always on my mind. I had my ovaries removed prior to treatment due to ovarian cysts that the doctors were concerned were cancerous. They were not. I suspect that the AI's mechanism of action cause problems as well as the lack of estrogen. I will speak to my oncologist. Currently I am not functioning well. It's amazing how few medical practitioners (ENT, PCP, allergist, etc.) are incapable of comprehending the potential relationship between AIs and health issues.

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@dmr4ever sadly I agree with you - seeing as these drugs are so widely prescribed the knowledge base of some practitioners , who should be ‘ in the know’ is at times quite inadequate!
More professional training / updating is required.

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reflector75 | @reflector75 | Apr 10 10:58am

This is my one big worry that after five years of considerable pain the symptoms may not go away. Some aspects of the literature suggest this may be the case. I was given no information about this when I commenced treatment and really feel I was not put in the picture enough to give informed consent.

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jwmusic65 | @jwmusic65 | Apr 10 11:24am

I am on an Anastrozole now and really wonder if it’s worth it. Oncologist also has me on herceptin infusions. Seems a lot since I have completed both radiation & chemo. Would appreciate anyone’s thoughts on this!

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jwmusic65 | @jwmusic65 | Apr 10 11:26am
In reply to @reflector75 "This is my one big worry that after five years of considerable pain the symptoms may..." + (show)
Profile picture for reflector75 @reflector75

This is my one big worry that after five years of considerable pain the symptoms may not go away. Some aspects of the literature suggest this may be the case. I was given no information about this when I commenced treatment and really feel I was not put in the picture enough to give informed consent.

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@reflector75 I feel the same way about upfront information. Cancer is a nasty disease & oncologists who are not upfront with patients should go back and read the oath they took when they started work with patients.

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dmr4ever | @dmr4ever | Apr 15 11:27am
In reply to @triciaot "@dmr4ever I’m postmenopausal, 68 at diagnosis, and on tamoxifen. The oncologist said I could choose tamoxifen..." + (show)
Profile picture for Rubyslippers @triciaot

@dmr4ever I’m postmenopausal, 68 at diagnosis, and on tamoxifen. The oncologist said I could choose tamoxifen or AI. This came from a highly recognized comprehensive cancer center in 2022.
My understanding of the research is that AIs have a slight, yet statistically significant, better outcome in postmenopausal women. A statistically significant number can be very small, and in this case I felt not a big enough difference to choose an AI.
Although, whether HER2 is positive or negative might affect the outcomes, making an AI a better choice.

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@triciaot
Yes. With a very large sample size/population a small percentage can be referred to as statistically significant. A statistical significance confirms that a result is not random. Which from a practitioner’s perspective is more meaningful than no treatment at all. On an individual level the small statistical probability is not necessarily practical. Researchers perceive patients as a group of thousands. What matters to me is my individual experience with quality of life. For me it is an issue of extending suffering vs actual living. I am so nauseous and fatigued every day that I miss out on my granddaughters’ events, can’t travel. have difficulty with activities of daily living. I am also 68, feel 80 and am not sure dying is the worst thing that can happen to me. I worked for Elsevier, Inc. (the largest medical publisher in the world) and edited drug studies for their MD Consult product. I have read all the studies and am aware of how statistically groundbreaking the results are for the world population. ScienceDirect.com, NIH and similar legitimate sources are my go-to for information. So I am making a well informed decision if I decide to stop the AI.

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