I'm a few mths in to taking letrozole, I've gone through the change no problem, since I've been taking these, the hot flushes are horrendous, to the point I have to sit down before I collapse, bit of a nuisance when ur working
Mine was caught early but had to have op and radio, I'm now on letrozole and have been for last 6 mths, I've had to buy a neck fan for work, because of the hot flushes, I'm having approx 3 an hr, driving me insane, and the constant fatigue is tiring in itself, its 9.15pm and I'm in bed after falling asleep on the sofa. I hate living like this
Hi BusyBeez, I went through a medical menopause with zoladex injections during chemo and then taking exemestane a few months ago. I too had intense hot flushes every 20 mins, 24/7 at first but mine have significantly reduced now - and I didn't notice much difference when I started taking exemestane.
I am taking sage (my BCN recommended it) and I am also pretty active, which apparently helps. I think mine settled a lot just due to chemo ending and time but the sage, fans and a chillax pillow really help. I'm now down to about every 2 hours, and at the weekend when I'm outside all day, I barely notice any. I still get nightsweats every 2-3 hours (vast improvement!). I use a chillax pillow to cool down and recently added a fan. If I can get myself to the point where I am actually cold, then this seems to calm everything down enough for me to not have another for a while - plus I can get back to sleep.
I just use the chillax pillow and fan to get rid of the flush and then I put the pillow by my bed so that it cools for next time, and turn the fan off.
Before I had those things, I don't think I cooled enough, so I was in a constant state of triggering another flush shortly after the last one went as I was still warm.
They are really awful, about the only real symptom I have experienced of menopause (a lot of other bodily issues I put down to chemo and they are settling with time). I had no idea how disruptive they were until I experienced them.
When I first got them, I had a lot of anxiety with them too, but that has calmed now and I am able to accept them and cool down. I think this is partly because I now have methods to cool down quickly rather than ride out the flush.
Good luck, I hope you can find thing that work for you.
I see that you are on anticoagulant meds. My sister in law is also on anticoagulant meds having had a number of blood clots in her lung. She has recently been diagnosed with er+ breast cancer but has been told that surgery isn't really an option for her given she would need to stop her medication and her history of blood clots. We are looking to probe more into that. Were you able to have surgery despite being on such medication?
I was told from the first diagnosis that surgery was not an option, as by the time my er+ breast cancer was found, it had already spread to my liver.
The medication I have been on is no longer acceptive, the cancer in my liver has increased in size in the last 6 months, so, as my general health is still very good, I have been advised to try a different group of medication, but I am very nervous about the change, as it could cause lower white blood count, and risk of blood clots.
So I too have a very difficult desertion to decide.
I hope your sister-in-law finds the right medication to help her.
Hi. I had quite bad side effects from Letrozole. Achy joints, weight gain, swelling in ankles and wrists,….hot sweats. I talked with my cancer care nurse and she told me that side effects take about 9 months to subside, for your body to get used to them. I also had a course of Accupuncture which was very good. I must say, my side effects are going away now. persevere..and try and stay on one brand of Letrozole. I’m on Accord and my doctor has been very good on sourcing these for me. I still have concerns about pain in my breast after 9 months but have been reassured that it’s nerves mending. good luck.
