Hi there does anyone have any feed back in the use of Tamoxifen? Everything I read is negative such as hot flushes , blood clots etc etc , what are your experiences and thoughts please ?
I can fully empathise with your dilemma. My wife is wrestling with this too. It has been suggested that she will be offered Letrozole after radiotherapy, which is 11 weeks away at the moment, due to COVID!
She is more mature than you and is postmenopausal, but having considered the effects of both Ai's and Tamoxifen, at the moment, she favours the latter because of the fact of it being a SERM and bone and cardioprotective. Having to take additional drugs like a bisphosphonate with concomitant side effects, to counter the negative bone effects of AI's like Letrozole, as well as possible cardioprotection, does not sit well with her.
The bottom line is that although she is aware of the superior recurrence stats of AI's like Letrozole, she also wants to factor in quality of life. This is when the statistics of both types of drugs have to be analysed and compared in order to attempt to gauge the cost benefits. How significant is the statistical difference between them in terms of recurrence and O.S? From what we have read so far, and we are prepared to be corrected, the benefit of AI's seem to be with recurrence rates rather than O.S. This is what each person has to consider and calculate after factoring in their own profile, which can be tricky.
We have read a few research papers that suggest it may even be possible to reduce the dose of Tamoxifen and for it to be just as effective as the standard dose. Initially, it used to be prescribed at 6 times the current dose! There has been experimentation with doses as low as 10mgs, 5mgs, and even 2.5mgs.
Having said the foregoing, there appear to be strong advocates of AI's and Letrozole in particular, in this group. It would be interesting and of benefit to hear from those who are happy and confident with Tamoxifen.
Good luck with your decision. I will be interested to know what it is.
