FEMARA Reviews (LETROZOLE)

Average Rating: 2.5 (1087 Ratings)

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 HORMONAL BIOLOGICAL RESPONSE MODIFIERS AROMATASE INHIBITORS

 Type: Rx Drug

  

FEMARA  (LETROZOLE):  This medication is used to treat certain types of breast cancer (such as hormone-receptor-positive breast cancer) in women after menopause. Letrozole is also used to help prevent the cancer from returning. Some breast cancers are made to grow faster by a natural hormone called estrogen. Letrozole decreases the amount of estrogen the body makes and helps to slow or reverse the growth of these breast cancers.   FDA Approval Date: 1997-07-25 (Sources: U.S. Centers for Medicare Services, FDA)

  

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Key to Ratings: 1=LOW (I would not recommend taking this medicine.)
5=HIGH (this medicine cured me or helped me a great deal.)

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RATING  REASONSIDE EFFECTS FOR FEMARACOMMENTSSEXAGEDURATION/
DOSAGE
DATE ADDED
 
 3  to prevent bc recurrence Hand swelling, stiffnes, can't grip objects. Memory lapses, brain freezes when trying to think of a simple word (forget about names). It's very embarassing. Joint pain, migraine headaches (new in last year), arms and legs have no strength, elevated cholesterol, BUT no recurrence of breast cancer (12 years)! I have two weeks until my five years are up and I can't wait, but I'm scared to be without meds (6 years on tamoxifen and 5 years on femara). I was hoping that someone would let me know that they feel "normal" again after stopping it after five years. M 50 5 years
2.5mg 1X day
7/17/2010
 1  breast cancer incontinence, severely painful feet in the morning, aching joints F 59
1X day
7/17/2010
 1  My sister has stage 1 breast cancer So far she has not experienced any side effects but I am very worried about her after reading the comments on this web-site. Her doctors prescribed Femara to block the estrogen that is feeding the tumor, thus hopefully shrinking the tumor. A natural product called DIM is what I am taking to balance my estrogen. I was diagnosed with uterine cancer which the doctors say came from too much "bad estrogen". As a result I had a complete hysterectomy- all my female organs were removed even though I had the tumor just in the uterus. I have been cancer free since 2007 but began taking a natural product called DIM two months ago. Health Resources in Hueytown, Alabama offers this product. Here is the DIM information from that website. "DIM(short for Di-Indole Methane)—is the key ingredient in this all-natural product. A unique phytonutrient, DIM is found in cruciferous vegetables like cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, mustard, turnip, bok choy, Brussels sprouts, kohlrabi and rutabaga. Effective for both men and women, DIM helps naturally support balanced estrogen levels. Numerous scientific studies have shown this single natural ingredient can greatly improve your estrogen metabolism and overall health. You would have to eat at least 2.5 pounds of cruciferous vegetables every day to get the amount of DIM in each daily serving of this product." Some of you may want to investigate this natural product because it does not wreck you bones or joints like Femara seems to do for some women. I am not connected in any way to this company and only share this information to educate others about alternative possibilities. My sister is going to talk to her doctor about DIM but I'm pretty sur F 58 7 days
? 1X day
7/16/2010
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 2  DCIS 6109 Arthritis head to toe(never had this before I started femara), bursitis in shoulder(required PT to get range of motion back), foggy brain, lack of energy, night time hot flashes/sweats Very costly F 57 7 months
1X day
7/14/2010
Email
 1  Stage 1 breast cancer I had bone pain/joint stiffness which was almost disabling, hot flashes, hair loss, depresssion, fatigue, loss of appetite, insomnia, mental confusion, & loss of strength in my entire body, and constipation. I stopped taking the medication 4 wks ago and am very slowly seeing the side effects improve. My doctor tells me it takes 8 wks for Femara to get out of your system entirely. I felt very guilty and scared stopping the medication, but I had no quality of life. I will never take this medication again. F 50 3 months
1X day
7/14/2010
Email
 4  breast cancer I'm doing fine with the Femara. The only side effect I have noticed is the hot flashes. They are frequent but brief in length. I am also on a modified anti-inflammation diet and an anti-oxidant cocktail. I was fortunate in that I had invasive lobular cancer that was found from having a breast reduction. I have had a double mastecomy, follwed by the Femara and diet. F 58 2 months
1X day
7/13/2010
 3  breast cancer fatigue, vaginal dryness, memory loss, joint pain It took about a year for side effects to begin showing up but after 4 years, the side effects are intensifying. Hopefully I only have another year to endure. F 65 4 years
30 mg 1X day
7/13/2010
 1  Breast cancer Femara gave me extreme joint pain. I could hardly walk. I felt like I was 90 and I was only 46. The great news is that when I quit taking Femara, I was feeling back to normal within a month. I had double mastectomy, chemo, radiation and 5 years on tamoxifen. My goal was to do everything I can to keep cancer away. I took Femara for six miserable months. If you are taking Femara for prevention of recurrence and you are not able to even walk without pain, quit Femara! It was the best decision I have made. Be sure to have your vitamn D levels checked. My vitamin D levels had been depleted (by Femara) which contributed to bone/joint pain. Good luck! F 47 6 months
usual 1X day
7/9/2010
Email
 2  breast cancer hot flashes, muscle aches, head aches, panic attack Dr. said to go off of it for 4 weeks and we'll talk about it then. I'm thinking I won't be going back on it. F 60 20 days
2.5 1X day
7/8/2010
 5  breast cancer The only side effect I'm having is stiffness in my hands when I first wake up. I haven't noticed any change in energy or weight gain. No hot flashes. Maybe I'm just lucky but I really haven't had a lot of problems with this drug. F 58 1 years
1X day
7/6/2010
 4  Metastatic breast cancer SEVERE hot flashes, excessive sweating, wt. gain, severe nausea. F 49 6 years
30 mg 1X day
7/5/2010
 3  To prevent the return of breast can There has been minor weight gain with Femara, but it's not horrible. I do have minor difficulty sleeping through the night. After over a year of taking Femara, I've started to experience minor depression (and there is nothing wrong). Arimidex had that effect on me within the first few months. Tamoxofen made me feel great, but the doctor insisted that I switch to Femara. This medicine is supposed to be the best at preventing the cancer from returning, which is why the doctor was so insistent. This medicine has prevented a recurrence of cancer, but I'm not crazy about the side effects. F 53 1 years
2.5 mg 1X day
7/5/2010
 1   F 53
1X day
7/5/2010
 2  stage 1 breast ca muscle/joint pain, but I work out a lot, trying to lose weight, and wasn't sure it was from the exercise or the drug. Then I developed a horrible stabbing headache after being on it for 7 weeksn (was switched from tamoxifen). After a trip to the ER and heavy duty pain meds, the headache stopped feeling like a spike driven through my head, but has now persisted for 10 days with varying severity. I stopped the femara, don't know if that was the cause but can't possibly take the chance that headache may come back. Quality of life counts, too. F 58 7 weeks
5 g 1X day
7/2/2010
 1  breast cancer F 49
1 tablet 1X day
7/2/2010
Patient History
 4  stage 1 , no nodes, lumpectomy the worst for me has been vaginal dryness/atrophy, dry eyes, additional weight gain of 15 lbs ( I gained about 10-15 lbs after menopause prior to cancer and rx) less energy with waxing and waning fatigue, insomnia at times (but that seems more related to relative stress). I haven't really had muscle or joint pain; hot flashes aren't bad. I'm wondering if I'm developing mild headache now in the "long term adjuvant setting". At last bone scan had osteopenia in my cervical spine but not hips. I work out three times a week aerobics and weights, and I think that may help, as well as the fact that I did not have chemo, only lumpectomy and radiation. I take daily vitamins, including calcium (1200-1500 mg) and D (1,000 mg at least;) CoQ10, L-carnitine and alpha lipoic acid, the latter three all for better cell functioning, vitamin C 500 mg, probiotics, Omega 3s/fish oil baby aspirin in addition to NSAIDS prn. I have 19 months to go on the Femara. No recurrance coming up on 4 years. I read that the AIs are 97% effective in suppressing estrogen entirely - no wonder we don't feel that great on this drug! - but if that's what it takes to keep me alive I will do it. I of course am curious if any of the side effects resolve after completing the treatment - if anyone out there knows! F 58 40 months
2.5 mg 1X day
6/29/2010
 4  endometrial stromal sarcoma none at first, some nausea actually but i associated it with blockages i get in intestines due to alot of surgery. Mainly aches and pains sometimes severe, swelling of hands and feet, tierdness at times seem to have quite a few headaches. side effects have become more severe after 4 years on the drug it keeps me here F 50 4 years
2.5mg 1X day
6/27/2010
Email
 2  Lumpectomy and Lymph nodes removed Joint pain, fatigue, sadness, memory problems, hot flashes, Miserable Wish I didn't have to take it- scared not to- F 64 4 years
2.5 1X day
6/21/2010
 1  breast cancer All of the above mentioned; the aches and stiffness of all the muscles (especially the larger ones)..... someone asked how long the side effects from this drug lasts; well honey - all I can tell you is this - I took the Femara for 10 months in 2007; I am now halfway through 2010, and I STILL have the muscle pains and stiffness.....it was at first mainly in my legs, but I am now dealing with arms, shoulders, neck and back as well.......I honestly believe I am permanently damaged from this drug and imagine a life in the near future with a cane and/or wheel chair.......it's depressing....I quit the Femara because I was not happy with my quality of life. Little did I know that within that 10 months, it had already RUINED it. F 58 10 months
can't reme 1X day
6/18/2010
Email
 1  Breast Cancer Over all hot body, Hot flash (30-40 per day) on face and feet, Shoulders and arms freezing, Extreme joint pain in knees, elbows and hands, Weight gain (50 lbs), uncontrollable hunger, Blurry vision, Insomnia, Depression, Fatigue, Hair loss, Memory problems. I took Tomoxifen for two years then was switched to Femara. After two years of this drug I no longer wanted to live. I was in pain 24/7. Knees hurt so bad I could hardly walk. Taking 800mg of Ibuprofen 3 to 5 times day would barely take the edge off. Hot flashes kept me from sleeping, lack of rest made the joints worse. Hurting joints made me tired and depressed. I stopped taking Femara 3 weeks ago (against the advice of my doctor). Within 4 days I could get out of my chair and walk without the extreme pain. The uncontrollable hunger is gone. I still have the hot flashes and some joint pain. I’m now sleeping 6-7 hours a night instead of 3-4. I’m no longer depressed and the fatigue is slowly improving. My plan was to take a 30 day break from this medication. Now I think I will research other options. I want quality of life. What is the long term effect of taking this medication? Will the joint pain ever go completely away? F 58 2 years
2.5mg 1X day
6/16/2010

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