FEMARA Reviews (LETROZOLE)Average Rating: 2.5 (1087 Ratings)Filter ResultsCompare FEMARA 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 |
More on FEMARA: Reviews Summary | Drug Safety Information
| RATING | REASON | SIDE EFFECTS FOR FEMARA | COMMENTS | SEX | AGE | DURATION/ DOSAGE | DATE ADDED |
| 1 | Breast cancer Stage 1 | I am permenantly arthritic, depressed, gained weight, have knee pain that requires Tylenol w/Codeine. I don't think my life will ever be pain free. I was walking almost two miles a day and now I need a cane to walk three blocks. I am looking for a lawyer for a class action suit requiring Novartis to put a black box warning on the enclosure advising patients to have baseline orthopedic consultation before taking the drug. | Novartis lies to us on the drug. It does not talk about the hideous side effects with the honesty owed to us and I would like to see them forced in public to admit that they are deliberately not telling the truth and have known about this for a while. | F | 65 | 15 months | 7/15/2007 | 2 | stage one breast cancer, no node | joint pain, numbness in feet and hands, frequent bladder pressure, small urination stream, weight gain in belly, night sweats, mood swings, difficulty focusing and tiredness, burning sensation under the skin which sometimes wakes me up at night, in addition to the night sweats and need to urinate. | I'm going to my surgeon today for a follow up and my second follow up mammogram. I am thinking about going off Femara and want to know if I can stop it cold turkey. Thank goodness for this site -- I'm not becoming a hypochondriac and imagining all these problems -- I now feel very, very old. I don't think I want to feel this way for the next four plus years and it only looks as if it will get worse if I continue the drug. Quality of life is very important. I work full time, drive a commute of one hour each way, and live with my aged mother who cannot live alone -- so I need every ounce of energy possible. | F | 59 | 9 months | 7/13/2007 | 2 | Breast Cancer -Stage 1 | Stiffness and aching of the legs,hips,and particularly my knees. Fatigue and hotflashes are horrible all hours of the day and night! Tingling in my finger tips on my left hand. Sore area in my left upper arm deep near the bone. | Been on the drug for 6 months | F | 54 | | 7/11/2007 | 1 | post tamoxifen, BC Stage 1 | Extreme fatigue, pain in hips, ankles, and knees. Dry skin, vaginal dryness, hair loss. numb, tingling hands, loss of dexterity. Weight loss.Palpitations.Felt 90 yrs. old. | I stopped drug due to extreme side effects.For women with low risk of recurrance, this may not be a good drug.It has taken 5 months for side effects to greatly diminish. I just now have a libido and I can walk without pain. My hands are much better now. | F | 52 | 3 months | 7/11/2007 | 1 | Breast Cancer | I feel sure that Femara is a good medicine, but the side effects are something else. I thought it was just me, but after reading all the comments I know I am not crazy. | After Chemo and taking Femara I developed Congestive Heart Failure, High Cholesterol and high blood pressure, my feet began hurting, joints hurt. Felt like an eighty year old woman. My Mother at 90 got around better than me. I then developed type 2 Diabetes. Now I have terrible neuropothy in my feet. My scalp is dry and ichy and what is SEX? I have forgotten what it is. I have also gained weight, and of course all the Doctors - Loose weight you will feel better. Yes I know, but excerise is a thing of the past. It is hard to do any walking that will do any good. Please God let this be almost over. | F | 67 | 5 years | 7/11/2007 | 2 | BC Stage 2a w/1node | I have been on Femara for one year now and the longer I am on it the more side effects are present. I posted my side effects last December. Then it mainly was the joint soreness and stiffness with a lot of fatigue. Today, the joint soreness continues, the neuropathy in my feet is now reached just above my ankles. The fatigue is still there. I have a strange feeling like a bruise in my left leg, but tests have not shown there is anything there. (i.e. no blood clot) My hair is thining and my scalp is very ichy and dry. I have started to gain weight. | F | 67 | 13 days | 7/9/2007 | 1 | Breast Cancer - stage 2 | EXTREME BONE PAIN, dry throat, dry skin and dry everything. | The pain was overwhelming. Quality of life was 0 on this drug. I was feeling great before starting Femara but side effects started almost immediately. | F | 55 | 6 days | 7/6/2007 | 3 | breast cancer | I have had joint pain and muscle pain. I also have burning nerve pain in my elbow and knee. I was tested for bone density and it was low (Osteopenia). My LD cholesterol numbers were high even though I completely changed my diet and exerised a lot. I read that high cholesterol and Osteopenia are also side effects of Femara. I refuse to take drugs for those problems as they have their own side effects. I take Femara to avoid metastases and therefore will continue with it in spite of the side effects. My sister died a year ago of breast cancer metastases; however, her cancer was Estrogen receptor negative. | I took Tamoxifen for about three years and then my oncologist switched me to Femara. I lost 10# after I stopped Tamoxifen and have since lost 5 more pounds. The odd thing though is that my waist and abdomen size have not changed at all. My waist is 32 inches and my abdomen is 39 inches and that is way too large. I weigh 135 and am 6 feet 7 inches tall. I have read that a lack of Estrogen causes weight gain in the abdomen and waist. Since Femara causes almost a complete lack of Estrogen, perhaps this is the problem. I wish that I knew. | F | 66 | 3 years | 7/5/2007 | 3 | breast cancer stage 2B | not many side effects. a bit sore in joints sometimes. | Had Breast Cancer 6 years ago, took tamoxifen for 5 years - femara was an option I took as "insurance" I guess. I can't say that it has given me any effects....weight perhaps - but it started with tamoxifen. No effects...perhaps it is not working!! | F | 39 | 4 months | 7/3/2007 | 4 | bc -ductal and lobular - node neg | bone pain especially in the ankle area - progression to osteoporosis in 2 years!; extreme vaginal dryness and loss of libido; dry skin | it is what it is and I haven't had a recurrance so I am afraid to stop it yet. I haven't been able to ascertain how long I need to stay on it and whether the adverse effects, like the libido, will return when I can finally stop it. | F | 47 | 3 years | 6/26/2007 | 2 | Breast Cancer stage 1 | Horrible vaginal burning during intercourse Heart palpitations Stiffness No Libido (whatsoever) | F | 42 | 6 months | 6/22/2007 | 2 | Stage 1 breast cancer, no nodes | I found this sight, and said "These women are me" Started with knee pain, ankle pain, then came stiffness all over. Hands swelling and stiff. Decreased range of motion. Fatige. Night sweats, waking me up. Chest discomfort. Surely this is not the price we pay, for hope! I thought I was just paranoid. I could barely walk when getting up in the morning. I work on my feet all day and by the end of the day, my legs were aching and burning. If I sat down for a while, I got stiff. I called my onocologist and am on hold, I will be trying something else at next visit. | F | 52 | 4 days | 6/19/2007 | 4 | Breast cancer | Poor concentration,Aching hips,hands,back and I guess everything else, severe mood swings, terrible hot flushes, impaired vision at times,weight gain(app 5 KG), palpitations,feeling odd nearly every day and many other symptoms... | It makes me feel better now I know that many other women feel these terrible side effects.I thought that I was the only one.My oncologist says that to keep moving is the best thing to do to replenish some oestrogen in your body.Meditation and yoga help a lot.With yoga, I do what I can as all stretches are not suitable.But even though I am heavier, moody, depressed at times,aching all over (and many other things) I am happy because hey!I am here and alive.Even having pains is better then having cancer!!!I am happy to be able to enjoy my beautiful children, my partner and my wonderful parents who support me all the way!With all their love and Femara I've been clear for 3 years now and hope to be for many years to come! | F | 41 | 30 days | 6/16/2007 | 2 | Stage IIa bc w/1 node pos | hair thinning. cognitive problems. weight gain that is impossible to take off. fatigue. I am not yet 50 and I look and feel much older. No libido. Vaginal walls are paper thin. | I have taken the drug for 3 1/2 years. Having read the comments on this site, I am ready to quit. I am frightened to think the side effects could be permanent. Not only has Femara compromised my ability to work effectively, and share physical intimacy, I feel like someone who has Alzheimer's-- but knows it. Very depressing. | F | 49 | 3 days | 6/13/2007 | 3 | est+/Her2-/Stg.3 BC/Mdfd Rdcl Maste | I have been taking FEMARA for 5 months in conjunction with a Xolodex shot every 3 mos. and I am experiencing many of the side effects mentioned here. Most espicially swollen joints in my knees, fatigue, body aches all over but mainly in my thighs, unbelievable weight gain that is really hard to get off, increased appetite yet decreased energy. I used to be extremely active, work-out at least an hour everyday and now I can't even stand to workout for more than 20 mins maybe 3x/wk. the most i can do is walk. after sitting for lengthy times, my knees and ankles get tight and walking is difficult for a few mins. i'm not in a serious relationship so no isseus with libido but who knows what lies ahead. overall, i'm mostly irritated with not being able to work-out or play with my neices because aunty's knees hurt or b/c aunty can't run that fast anymore. it's really heart-breaking and my will is being chipped at little by little. i didn't bargain for this at all, but at this point, my options | One patient noted that she uses yoga to excercise, stretches quite often and gets body massages. I believe this will help with tightness. Also, does anyone have any suggestions on how to curb appetite? It's crazy, but if I skip a meal, my whole body begins to quiver. Even though I know I'm not really hungry, my body acts as if I haven't eaten in days. To aid with insomnia, my nurse suggested taking a couple of benadryl's each night since the active ingridient is found in sleep aides. That has helped a lot. Overall, I'm not happy with the effects I'm experiencing. Does anyone have any natural remedies and does anyone have any idea if this will affect my chances of having children in the future? Thank you and good luck to you all. | F | 25 | 6 months | 6/12/2007 | 3 | stage 3 BC | Horrible joint pain; swollen knee/elbow;insomnia; weight gain; my quality of life has not been this bad since I was on A/C. I feel like I'm 90 years old when I get out of bed, and this is while taking 2 anti-inflamatory pills daily. No libido; fatigue... fatigue with an insomnia back- that's a GREAT combination. I'm tired ALL the time and Can't Sleep. Sweet. | I'm somewhat satisfied with this medication only because I'm hopeful that it is increasing my chances for survival. I don't know if I'll be up to continuing to take it for another 3 years I am making that choice on a day to day basis. | F | 44 | 7 months | 6/4/2007 | 2 | Stage 2 BC 4 lymph nodes | Tired, heart palpitations, bloated, joint pain, was exercizing every morning, now I don't have the energy to do anything. | Is there any natural supplement to take instead of this, | F | 57 | 4 days | 6/2/2007 | 2 | BC lymph node invl stage2 | Joint pain, very bad, weight gain, vaginal dryness that is unbearable to have relations with my husband. Dizziness and heart palpitations. Thank you for this site, I now know I am not going crazy and that these symptoms are from the drug and not normal aging!!! | I am going to the oncologist in Aug-07 and make the decision to stay on the drug or go off...Followed Tamoxifen (took for 2 1/2 years) and then Femara. I was too afraid to quit taking this before. | F | 54 | 2.5 years | 6/1/2007 | 1 | Breast cancer recurrence prevention | Horrible musculoskeletal pain. At age 45, I literally felt 90. It hurt to step on my feet when I woke up in the morning. I also had NO libido, chest pain and cough that went away after I stopped the medication. | F | 45 | 12 months | 5/30/2007 | 2 | 5 yrs on tamoxifan | Stiff arthritic like hands, knees feel like they are arthritic after sitting for long or short periods of time, feet ache, hips feel horrible and lower back pain, can't tie my sneakers some mornings. Starting to get irregular heart beat as well. | After 3 mos I'm taking myself off of this medication. This is beginning to look like a drug that has been given to patients with not enough testing. I am/was an active walker, 3-4 miles daily and now I have a hard time walking 1 block. Not worth it for me at 53 years old. | F | 53 | 3 months | 5/27/2007 |