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What problems have you had with Tamoxifen?
Breast Cancer | Last Active: Jan 25, 2023 | Replies (67)Comment receiving replies
It really has to be a personal decision about what you want to do for yourself. I would suggest doing as much research as you can, including asking questions of your health care team. Then put it all together and decide what you think you can live with. My problem is that my husband and children are scared of losing me and are mostly focused on the cancer. But it will in the end be my body that suffers the consequences of whatever treatment I do. It is just a really hard place to be in. Good luck with everything!
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It's a lot easier if one had any of the genetic tests that use analysis of genes (including looking for well- and lesser-known genetic mutations that signify possible quixotic reactions to cancer) that yield a risk score for recurrence. I had the OncotypeDX done and it changed the breast surgeon's and oncologists outlook for treatment as the risk score was low.
Oncotype's website shows a few examples where clinicians might have predicted differently: a client with Stage 0 non-invasive DCIS but a genetically-based recurrence risk of over 50% and a Stage 4 invasive DCIS with lymph node involvement but yielded a low risk from genetic testing. So, what might sound bad using the usual statistical models, might not have a negative outlook and vice versa.
But people can try the anti-hormone drugs and monitor side effects, if any. Just be aware of the drug's risk profile and which side effects might actually be symptoms of a problem. Every drug has a risk profile. The newest drugs have the least data so my preference is to not take any or proceed either care if one is necessary. Be extra body-attentive in a sense.