Hi, I have had two major surgeries connected to Endometrial cancer. The first a total hysterectomy the second a growth on the outside lining of my bowel.
my treatment is 200 mg of Provera daily. I find it very brutal in its side effects and wondering about continuing the treatment . I will of course discuss with my consultant etc.
is this usual? Thank you
Welcome to the Online Community here at Macmillan. I hope you find it a helpful place to access support and ask questions.
My name is Vanessa and I am one of the information nurses.
I’m sorry to hear you are finding the side effects of Provera so difficult.
As I am sure you know, Provera is a hormone therapy used to treat endometrial cancer (sometimes known as womb cancer).
Unfortunately, like all drugs, Provera has side effects including weight changes, dizziness, feeling sick and tiredness. Side effects may improve after 3-4 weeks of taking the medication.
We would always recommend talking to your treatment team if you are finding the side effects intolerable. It may be that they can give advice or additional medication to help you mange or reduce side effects.
It may also be possible to change your hormone therapy to a different preparation and sometimes this can help with side effects.
Some people use complementary therapies to help with the stresses of cancer, its treatment and side effects. It is, however, important that you talk to your treatment team before using complementary therapies as some therapies may not be suitable to use alongside certain cancer treatments.
You can also always call one of our nurses directly if you want to talk over your specific side effects, this may enable us to give more detailed advice.
I can see you are wondering about continuing your treatment. Decisions about treatment are always best discussed with your treatment team. It can help to prepare in advance for that discussion by making a list of points you want to cover.
We do have some suggestions regarding questions to ask your healthcare team and this includes questions relating to side effects.
I hope you find this information helpful.
Take care
Vanessa G, Cancer Information Nurse Specialist
You can also speak with the Macmillan Support Line team of experts. Phone free on 0808 808 0000 (7 days a week, 8am-8pm) or send us an email.
Ref: VG/SMG
