Tamoxifen yes or no?

Hiya 

I was prescribed Tamoxifen 15 years ago and told to take it for five years. I'd had a grade 2 tumour with no lymph involvement. Due to weight gain and some calf muscle pain, I stupidly stopped taking the Tamoxifen after three years.

At the beginning of this year a routine check-up for a "frozen shoulder" revealed I had metastases in the lymph nodes and liver. I wish I'd taken the Tamoxifen for the full five years and said to hell with the extra few pounds and aches and pains. 

I'm now on it again and won't be stopping until they change it post menopause. I get hot flushes and my legs hurt but I'm here to moan about it and that's the main thing. 

Don't have second thoughts - take the Tamoxifen. 

Thank you for your reply, I’m so sorry your cancer has returned, keep fighting, you got this  x that’s certainly made me think, thank you xx

Hi , 

I don’t take Tamoxifen I’m on Letrozole however I think the symptoms are very similar. 

I started taking Letrozole in May, I got aches and pains quite badly at first and especially in the morning as I felt very stiff but it eased off very quickly once I started moving about. I would wake half a dozen times in the night sweating etc.

I’ve been taking them three months and I’ve had 3 different brands, not by choice, just whatever the chemist could get at the time and I can’t say any brand has been different from the other. 

Some ppl swear by one brand and felt significantly worse if switched to another brand. Some ppl ask to be kept on the same brand.

My oncologist told my all about the aches and pains, hot flushes and said they should settle down after a few months. 

I can only go off my symptoms to say he was right I am not getting the pains I was at first, I have occasional aches but I would expect that as we all probably experience say backache if ironing/ stand for a long time, I certainly do, but I did before cancer. My knees aren’t great when bending but as my oncologist said I’m in remission after all my treatment I’m hopeful. I still have hot flushes but they aren’t as bad.

I do feel the oncologists aren’t always sympathetic to the aches and pains has I think they look you as if to say, “Well what would you rather have aches and pains or cancer!”, it might just be me lol.

My oncologist is very forthright and tells you exactly how it is, he sugarcoats nothing and I appreciate that, he told me go to see my GP and he was right, he is a cancer specialist, the side effects are a Gp’s job.

Please talk to your oncologist don’t just stop taking the Tamoxifen and I would see the GP about exercise, diet or maybe vitamins you could take to help you with any side effects.

Let us know how you get on x