Concerned about the side effects of anastrozole

@colleenyoung
Unfortunately, my oncologist did not warn me. I had gone to a neurologist for my CIPN who wanted to do a raft of tests to see if something else might be contributing to the neuropathy. One was for a thyroid test which came back as hyperthyroid. I marched off to my GP who referred me to an endocrinologist and for a thyroid ultrasound. Both doctors knew how much biotin I was taking.

I personally was unconvinced that I was hyperthyroid and started researching the condition online. That is where I found that, up until something like 2016, endocrinologists had been treating patients for hyperthyroidism when in fact it was biotin which was changing the test assay. Sooo, I passed along the news to my GP who allowed me to drop the biotin for a week and then re-take the thyroid test which subsequently was quite normal.

The lessen taught me to stop all supplements about 48 hours or so before every blood test in order to get a more accurate reading on my health. Regrettably, doctors in my area don't instruct patients accordingly.

For hair thinning - my doctor said to use Rogaine shampoo if it bothered me.

My doctor told me to try the Gold Bond lotions - they have some for extreme dryness.

i had hair thinning from anastrozole. I only noticed it after about 4 months On the drug.

A number of people have mentioned biotin, also known as vitamin B7, to help promote hair growth. Recently, I came across these articles:
- Biotin, marketed for hair and nails, could skew some medical test results, researchers warn https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/biotin-can-interfere-with-lab-tests-study-says-1.5051992
- The FDA Warns that Biotin May Interfere with Lab Tests: FDA Safety Communication https://www.fda.gov/medicaldevices/safety/alertsandnotices/ucm586505.htm

Here are some key points from the first article:
"It is known that biotin supplements can interfere with lab tests, resulting in false positive and false negative results on a wide range of clinically important tests."
"Health agencies, including the U.S. National Institutes of Health (https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Biotin-Consumer/), say there isn't enough evidence to support the claims that biotin improves hair, nails and skin, and that more research is required before it should be recommended for that purpose."

@elizm, did your doctor tell you about biotin possibly interfering with lab tests?

I have been on Femura for 5 weeks and have not seen any hair thinning yet, but perhaps its too early. I did not have chemo, only surgery and radiation.

@francine6829
Yes, I think it has been helpful for both my hair and nails (all grew back, thick and glossy) and I haven't noticed much thinning in the meantime. AIs are hard on skin, however, and I haven't found something to help that, yet.

@ francine6829
Femara is one of the aromatase inhibitors. (I take anastrozole, for example.) One of the side effects of all of the AIs is hair thinning due to the reduction of circulating estrogen from an AI. Taking Biotin daily helps. Just stop taking the Biotin a few days before any thyroid blood tests as it affects the test assay.

Was the biotin helpful?

@francine6829
I began losing my hair about a week or so following my first chemo infusion (paclitaxel aka taxol). Chemo lasted about three months, after which my oncologist suggested 50mg/day of Biotin to regrow my hair, fingernails, and toenails (yes, even my nails had gone toxic and lifted).