Aromatase Inhibitor

Posted by mariam58 @mariam58, 3 days ago

Good morning, I may switch to exemestane. I have been taking Letrozole for 10 months but have many side effects especially joint pain. I was diagnosed with ILC one year ago. Has anyone made this switch? Thank you!

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Breast Cancer Support Group.

I have read a lot about the Gp1 weight loss drugs helping with inflammation which also helps reduce joint pain. I plan on speaking to my oncologist about trying a very low dose of one to see if it would help. A friend in AI meds for a long time and estrogen depleted said it has worked wonders for her. She isn’t taking enough for weight loss and I wouldn’t want to either since I don’t need to lose weight but losing inflammation would be wonderful. Might be worth a try asking about it. There are also studies saying it has been found to reduce incidence of breast cancer reoccurrences which would be an amazing benefit.

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Profile picture for brightlight66 @brightlight66

@loridalton I was also diagnosed with PILC in June 2024. Had a single mastectomy (3 nodes with carcinoma), chemo, excision surgery to clear margins and radiation. I tried Letrozole for 2 months with carpal tunnel, insomnia and bone pain, tried Exemestane for 1 month with GI issues and have now been on Anastrozole for 9 months. I'm 67, have 3 trigger fingers, insomnia and recently depression, so I took a drug holiday for 2 weeks and feel GREAT. Totally back to myself again.
I don't want to start another AI, so I'll go back on Anastrozole at some point and do my best.

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@brightlight66 I don’t know a thing about PILC but my oncologist suggested starting with an every other day dosage to begin Anastrozole. I didn’t, I jumped in at every night and am not having any problems. I just turned 69 and my cancer was DCIS. My pharmist also said it was the one best tolerated by most.

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Profile picture for roberta75 @roberta75

I took Letrozole for over 5 years for ER and PR +. I also took Zyrtec to help with the pain. In 2025 I was diagnosed with TNBC . I had a mastectomy followed by chemo. It was suggested that I take Claritin for bone pain. It seemed to help. It might also help with AI side effects. Maybe check with your medical team to see if Claritin would help with side effects.

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@roberta75
So sorry about your mastectomy! after the Letrozole?? did I read that right? I am shocked by that if I did. I am currently on Exemestane, and little to no side effects but I drink PROPEL a water supplement with electrolytes. It's been very helpful. What is TN, and the last two initials are breast cancer I think, right?

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Profile picture for mariam58 @mariam58

@loridalton Thank you for sharing! I had pleomorphic LCIS but regular ILC. Good luck with your MRI. Take care

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@mariam58 I just typed it wrong. I also have PILC. How has your experience gone? I try to find information on the internet about treatment, but much of it is conflicting. I know there are many variables like genetics, onco test results, and positive lymph nodes.

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Profile picture for angele2times @angele2times

@roberta75
So sorry about your mastectomy! after the Letrozole?? did I read that right? I am shocked by that if I did. I am currently on Exemestane, and little to no side effects but I drink PROPEL a water supplement with electrolytes. It's been very helpful. What is TN, and the last two initials are breast cancer I think, right?

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@angele2times
Hi, my second breast cancer was Triple Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC). It is different because it was not estrogen or progesterone positive. So an AI like Letrozole is not a treatment option. The standard of care is chemo.

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Profile picture for mariam58 @mariam58

@roberta75 Thank you for sharing. I have not heard about taking Claritin or Zyrtec to help with the side effects. I will ask my oncology team. Appreciate that information. Take good care

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@mariam58 I’ll be interested in what they say. When I went through chemo, they put me on loratidine (Claritin) once daily for a week each time to help with the pain and inflammation. I still had to take an anti inflammatory with it for several days. Later I read an article out of Sweden that did a study (collecting info on record over 10 years of usage) on the use of loratidine and dexloratidine (prescription strength) on breast cancer reoccurrence and their results were positive. Asked my oncologist if I should consider it and he was not that enthused - wanted to wait for further info. Have also read articles on long term side effects of these types of antihistamines which can really muddy the picture. So as I said, will be interested in your oncologist input.

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Profile picture for mistymar @mistymar

@mariam58 I’ll be interested in what they say. When I went through chemo, they put me on loratidine (Claritin) once daily for a week each time to help with the pain and inflammation. I still had to take an anti inflammatory with it for several days. Later I read an article out of Sweden that did a study (collecting info on record over 10 years of usage) on the use of loratidine and dexloratidine (prescription strength) on breast cancer reoccurrence and their results were positive. Asked my oncologist if I should consider it and he was not that enthused - wanted to wait for further info. Have also read articles on long term side effects of these types of antihistamines which can really muddy the picture. So as I said, will be interested in your oncologist input.

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@mistymar Very interesting study you mention out of Sweden. Have used Claritin to help with bone pain after Neulasta injections to boost white blood counts and also used it to help with Zometa infusions. But this is the first time I've seen mention of it to help with cancer reoccurrence. Thanks for the heads-up on this as something to follow.

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