ARIMIDEX Reviews (ANASTROZOLE)Average Rating: 2.5 (1431 Ratings)Filter ResultsCompare ARIMIDEX with similar:
Type: Rx Drug
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Results are sorted by Date added. Key to Ratings: 1=LOW (I would not recommend taking this medicine.) Page: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 |
More on ARIMIDEX: Reviews Summary | Drug Safety Information
| RATING | REASON | SIDE EFFECTS FOR ARIMIDEX | COMMENTS | SEX | AGE | DURATION/ DOSAGE | DATE ADDED |
| 1 | stage II + 2 positive nodes | Severe joint pain and stiffness in my shoulders, ankles, wrists and fingers. I have neuropathy in my hands. Tingling and severe pain mainly in thumbs. Keeps me awake at night. Pain killers don't seem to help. I have some water retention and weight gain. Hot flashes have gotten better. I was on arimidex for 6 months and have decided to stop taking it due to side affects affecting my quality of life. Oncologist put me back on tamoxifen. I have been of medication for 2 weeks and joint pain and stiffness has gotten better. I'm still dealing with the neuropathy in my hands and hope that will subside soon because it is driving me crazy. | F | 42 | 6 months | 10/22/2005 | 2 | early breast cancer | Severe back pain, aching arms & pain in legs and hands, no short term memory at all, 15 lb weight gain, depression, very, very sore feet, ankles hurt, knees hurt all the time, severe fatigue | 2 months on Arimidex - the side effects are horrendous and never let up. I'm on pain killers all day and if I go an hour past time for a dose I start feeling it. Pain in arms, legs and feet are really bad. I also have fibromyalgia so it's a double whammy for me. I can't tell what's what. My only choice is to stop the Arimidex. That's not really a choice is it? Hang in there everyone and pray there's a new drug just around the corner. I do. | F | 63 | 11 weeks | 10/20/2005 | 1 | BREAST CANCER | URINARY TRACT INFECTIONS CONSTANT UNLESS MEDICATED VAGINAL DRYNESS, NO SEX INTEREST AT ALL SEVERE HOT FLASHES 10+ DAILY SEVERE MEMORY FOG FATIGUE, WEIGHT GAIN SEVERE JOINT PAIN LOWER EXTREMITIES | I FELT THIS DRUG BUILT UP IN MY BODY. I WAS WILLING TO GIVE IT A CHANCE, I SUFFERED MONTHLY URINARY INFECTIONS THAT CAUSED ME LOSS OF QUALITY OF LIFE AND HUGH DOCTORING BILLS FOR TESTS AND PROBES AND SCANS. I BROUGHT AN END TO IT MYSELF AND MY ONCOLOGIST ALLOWED A TRIAL PERIOD OFF THE DRUG FOR 6 WEEKS. A LARGE MAJORITY OF THE SIDE EFFECTS DISAPPEARED. NO MORE URINARY INFECTIONS. SEVERITY OF HOT FLASHES DECREASED AS WELL AS MEMORY FOG. I SWITCHED TO FEMARA -NO INFECTIONS SO FAR (6 MONTHS) BUT THE HOT FLASHES ARE MORE SEVERE BUT LESS IN QUANITY, THE WEIGHT GAIN IS CONSTANT AND THE JOINT PAIN IS GETTING INTOLERABLE. | F | 65 | 9 days | 10/12/2005 | 4 | breast cancer stage I | I will be satisfied if it continues to keep me cancer free. I have been taking the drug for 2 1/2 years. The hot flashes are brief and tolerable. I have back pain and joint pain in my knees that has necessitated treatment by an orthopedic surgeon. He sees knee replacement down the road, although he does not know enough about Arimidex to attribute the condition to it. Overall, I do not have the mobility and agility that I had pre cancer treatment. I don't know if my depression is due to the continuous pain or the drug. Fortunately, I have had no weight gain from it. | F | 60 | 2 years | 10/11/2005 | 4 | bc stage II 30 mm, no node involvem | I have joint pains now and then, but they are not too bad. I experience sleeplessness, more than before. I have taken Arimidex for 2 1/2 years and during the last few months my skin on hands, arms and thighs has become disgustingly wrinkled. The face is luckily OK. Vaginal dryness is awful. I use Replens and it is so-so, I guess better than nothing. Many people on this site have complained about memory loss and my oncologist is switching such patients to some other aromatase inhibitor, which seems to help. I wish there was a test that could predict recurrence. I had double mastectomy in order to at least stop recurrence in the other breast. It turned out that the other breast had some pre-cancerous changes. I had been on HRT for more than 20 years. | F | 71 | 2 days | 10/8/2005 | 5 | early breast ca | raised ggts | hopefully it will work......... | F | 56 | 1 years | 9/28/2005 | 2 | Breast Cancer Stage 1c, mastectomy | Crying, depression, hot flashes, fatigue, stiff joints, trouble walking, vaginal dryness, no sex drive | I was on it 2 years ago for 6 months and then stopped because it was diminishing my quality of life and my cancer was small enough that it was questionable whether it was worth it. But now I am in the midst of a possible new cancer in my other breast which they biopsying soon. I have decided to get mastectomy on my remaining breast regardless. However, this scare made me go back on Arimidex immediately. I will try to tough out the side effects to decrease my anxiety about recurrence which is extremely high right now. Have currently been back on the med 2 weeks. And as I recall, the first month is hell........and it is hell. We must hang tough sisters and do what we gotta do! | F | 51 | 6 months | 9/26/2005 | 3 | stage I - lumpectomy | Pain and stiffness in feet, hands, neck, hips and back. Also osteopenia, vaginal pain, hot flashes, slight weight gain and a significant increase in cholesterol level. | Am not sure if this drug is helping or not but I'm still among the living! I felt much better after the chemo and radiation than I do now. Will the side effects ever diminish?? Increased cholesterol is not one of the side effects the manufacturer admits to. My oncologist told me that is something new they are finding out about. My levels have always been excellent. Almost everything in my diet has zero or a very small amount of it. I'm taking calcium w/D and Fosamax for the ostopenia. It's working. Effexor doesn't seem to help with the hot flashes. Four months after finding the BC I was diagnosed with kidney cancer - had the kidney removed, no followup medication, no problems. When are 'they' going to be able to do that with BC? | F | 60 | 2 years | 9/24/2005 | 2 | breast cancer | Very stiff in the morning (ankles, neck). Joint pain that is getting worse, particularly in hips. Loss of flexibility despite stretching regularly. | I cannot take Tamoxifen because of blood clot problems. I am determined to stay on Arimidex to prevent recurrence but I am very worried about it's effects on my quality of life. I am very active and I am now starting to feel limited because of the joint pain. I am also worried about the long term effects of Arimidex. | M | 41 | 7 months | 9/21/2005 | 2 | Breast cancer Stg 1 Grade 111 | Short but v.frequenthot flushes (every hour). Severe joint pain in feet, knees,hips in morning. Aching shoulder & upper arm on surgery side (before arimidex I'd been able to return to gym & tennis with no pain). Pain in upper arm and legs wakes me through the night so fatigued, S/t memory problems, no sexual desire and steady weight gain. | My symptoms began within 3 weeks of taking Arimidex. At first I put them down to the radiotherapy I was undergoing and since then Cancer Surgeon claims due to residual shock of chemotherapy and 'your age'. However symptoms have continued to worsen. I try to take regular exercise, eat a very healthy diet (no red meat lots fruit and veg, wholegrains and organic where possible plus no dairy and lots of soy,linseed etc), take calcium + vitamin D glucosomine + cod liver oil etc. I will stay on Arimidex till next check up in 3 months but I am begining to question benefits V. quality of Life. I feel 10 years older and had more energy during chemo than now!!! | F | 49 | 3 months | 9/17/2005 | 5 | Stage One Breast Cancer (Lumpectomy | Mild stiffness in knees and ankles, and slight weight gain, but both could be due to lack of regular exercise while recuperating from surgery and a broken toe. | I have only been taking Arimidex for a month now, and so far it doesn't seem bad. I am a very fit person, and my daily exercise program involves everything from running (just getting back to that now) to aerobics, yoga and tai chi, kick boxing and weight training. I have been taking Glucosamine Chondroitin since my joints seemed stiff at menopause. I am extremely limber and flexible and strong, and what I am wondering from someone else who is a fitness buff and who has been on Arimidex longer than I have: is there any benefit from being very fit and continuing a serious exercise program? Is this something that seems to help the joint problems so many are reporting? I'd really like to hear from people who DON'T have joint problems and try to figure out why, in case it would be helpful. I would hate to have to give up my active life because of aching joints if there is anyway I can avoid or lessen it. Of course it's better than cancer, but it is a real life style issue. Thanks fo | F | 57 | 4 weeks | 9/16/2005 | 4 | Stage 2 breast cancer, +2 nodes | Achy, swollen knees. Feet, ankles and neck sore, but less so. Hot flashes, but not as many or as severe as when on Tamoxifen. Hair very thin. | Hot flashes completely controlled at night with gabapentin (Neurontin). The achy joints appear to be getting worse over time. | F | 53 | 10 months | 9/10/2005 | 4 | Breast cancer stg II - | hot flashes first yr- seldom now -, Knee pain, hip pain - no weight gain - my weight under control (lost weight So Beach Diet)- no hair thinning at all - mood swings - depressed - anxiety(sometimes panic) - memory cloudy - forget names- zero interest in sex- play tons of golf- see chiropractor weekly to keep mobile - use lavender oil to calm and sleep at night - works well | It would be too scary to not take it - but am worried about it aging me - sometimes I dream about who I used to be - but I am doing my best to hang in there with this little pill - this is it so far- I pray it works for all of us | F | 55 | 3 years | 9/8/2005 | 3 | breast cancer,stage 2 +1 lymph node | initially some stomach problems that have subsided; hair loss increased dramatically in the past couple of months; general stiffness in the morning; significant tingling and some pain in hands -just diagnosed as mild carpal tunnel syndrome- wondering if this is due to Arimidex since I had no prior symptoms | less hot flashes than w/ Tamoxifen which I took for 3 yrs. not sure I want to continue Arimidex due to my hair loss - losing it once w/ chemo was enough | F | 47 | 7 days | 9/8/2005 | 4 | Breast Cancer | Slight hot flashes, ovaries feel like I am going to have a period, lower back pain, a little nausea in the morning. I take mine at night before bedtime. | I take "Bone Up" (which includes calcium with vitamin D3 for absorption, manganese, magnesium, glucosamine and a few others) and so far have not had any joint pains or joint problems. Can be purchased at any Whole Foods or nutrition store. | F | 57 | 30 days | 8/30/2005 | 2 | Breast CA St. 2 lymph node [2004] | Hot flashes, aches and pains in back, joint pains in hips and shoulders, fatigue, short term memory loss, dry cough, vaginal dryness, anxiety, weight gain, dizziness | I have had sensory peripheral neuropathy since 1989 so could not tell if it worsened as my feet are insensate and I walk with aid of a cane. Most of the side effects came and went; hot flahes settled in pernmanently after two months as did short term memory loss and dizziness. Dizziness meant I could not walk at all without assistance of another person, so I had to give up Arimidex immediately or not leave my home. Within a month of stopping Arimidex most side effects disappeared, including anxiety which was a relief. | F | 59 | 75 days | 8/30/2005 | 2 | Breast Cancer Grade 1 Stage 3 | I used to do yoga and was a dancer when I was younger. I was extremely limber and flexible. Now, despite staying active (3 times a week at the gym), my knee joints are stiff and achy. I am no longer able to sit back on my heels, nor do any of the stretching exercises. Like others, I am often lost for words - no memory for names and places. | I am very concerned about the long term (by that I mean years after I will have stopped taking this medication)negative effects of estrogen deprivation. There is a reason why we have estrogen receptors and the aromatase enzyme everywhere in our bodies, including the brain. I'm worried about cognitive impairment. | F | 49 | 2 months | 8/30/2005 | 2 | breast cancer | Extreme joint pain, especially knees and hands. FATIGUE!!! TRuly felt better coming off chemo and radiation than at present. Well maybe not better but able to do a lot more physically. Depression!!! | weight Gain is a problem. The question Do YOU Remember Where When or How? Answer is almost always NO! I have to believe all of this is going to keep me cancer free. | F | 62 | 2.5 years | 8/24/2005 | 4 | Breast Cancer | Shelly,if you are reading this ,email me-------- i lost your addy,in regards to side effects | F | 54 | 21 months | 8/22/2005 | 3 | Diagnosed with LCIS - prevention | Hot flashes were bad the first couple months, but now the joint pain is moderate to severe; knees, feet, ankles, lower back. Legs ache and keep me awake at night. Also memory loss...thought it was just me until I read this! No sexual desire... | Concerned about long term damage after the five year protocol. Wonder if it's worth the side effects. | F | 56 | 6 months | 8/21/2005 |