Side effects from long term breast cancer preventative meds
I had a lumpectomy in Nov 22, a month of radiation, then started on the 5-10 year course of the preventative med.
The med made me feel like bones & joints were breaking apart. I paused Anastrozole in July. 3 months later I'm still dealing with the pain. My oncologist suggested that MS might be causing the meds side effects to linger longer than what's typical.
Anyone deal with this? I'm still debating whether to take another med which will likely cause the same issues or just deal with the cancer risk.
I am sorry I didn't realize you have been dealing with cancer over the past year,
! I hope you are doing well overall (in the cancer department).
And, I'm gonna be honest here and say that your question is well outside my wheelhouse. And frankly, the fact that your oncologist isn't sure either makes me wonder if you may be dealing with a medically complex situation here. Have you been able to keep up your appointments with your neurologist during your cancer treatments? Have you had to forgo any of your MS meds while undergoing treatment? Also, your decision to stop or switch cancer meds is a heavy, personal decision. That would be a great discussion to have with your neurologist and maybe even your general practitioner. I understand not wanting to live the next 20+ years in pain, but I don't know what the right decision is for you. I mean, an oncologist is probably going to be pro-treatment, but who knows? Maybe yours is open to discussing all your options, including stopping some or all meds.
Also, and not to be a total downer here, but it may be a good idea to get a full physical and lab workup to make sure something else isn't causing your pain. It could very well be your MS or the cancer meds or something else altogether and I would hate for anyone to assume it's your MS when another condition could have decided to rear its head into your life.
So, all this to say that . . . I don't know. And, again, I think your situation is a bit complex and shouldn't be dismissed. We do have a couple of breast cancer survivors in this community and I hope they see your post and chime in.
I hope you are able to get some answers and to feel confident making a decision for your health and treatment choices! Please keep us posted, but only if you feel comfortable doing so.
Best, Erin, MultipleSclerosis.net Team member.It's not a matter of now living in pain, it &'s increasing existing constant pain anew fears about my ability to walk or move normally.
It doesntThis is much different than my MS foot drop issues. Repeated falls when trying to put my foot on a stair step or curb led to my MS dx. Foot drop is a continuous issue so staying vigilant about paying close attention to what my feet are doing.my brain burped and caused me to post that garbled mess. I know I can't fix it tonight to make it make sense. It'll have to wait until I've slept. , no worries. I got the gist. Do you have a lot of confidence in your neurologist? If so, it would probably be a good idea to schedule time for a good discussion about this whole thing. Bring your medical records and any notes you've taken during your chemo journey. Feel free to make those notes now, as you start thinking of things and what changes have occurred in your pain levels and MS symptoms like foot drop. I know my answers are kind of annoying 'non-answers' and I wish I could really offer some fabulous insight, but you are the expert on your own body and what's going on right now. Any suggestions I might offer would be well meaning, but probably useless and you have enough to deal with already.
Best, Erin, MultipleSclerosis.net Team Member.
