Hi Koryn,
Diane certainly covered an excellent range of resources (thanks!), and your pharmacist is well educated on meds and their interactions. Congrats on completing most of your treatment; it is a surreal experience that can be enlightening at the same time. I was also diagnosed ER+PR+HER/2Neu+ in 2008, while going through menopause. I had been on bio-identical hormones for a few months, and my oncologist instructed me to stop all hormone therapy. In short, because there is really no definitive answer to what hormone therapy in general is doing to us. As you can see from all the references above, it's a controversial topic. Whether or not insurance covers it depends on your policy. I would certainly talk to your doctor about your concerns; if you are taking Tamoxifen in addition to hormones, it seems they would be working in opposition to each other.
Treatment choices become very personal, and I encourage you to continue to explore your options. My choice at this point is conservative regarding all treatments, whether "natural" or medical. What did help me with the return of hot flashes is a series of about a dozen acupuncture treatments, and adding a few tablespoons of organic flax seed oil to my salads. We hear it over and over for a multitude of health concerns, to avoid processed foods, increase vegetable and fruit intake, reduce red meat, minimize alcohol, stay active and manage stress. If I steer too far from this course, I pay the price with increased symptoms. I wish you all the best!
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Hi Koryn,
Diane certainly covered an excellent range of resources (thanks!), and your pharmacist is well educated on meds and their interactions. Congrats on completing most of your treatment; it is a surreal experience that can be enlightening at the same time. I was also diagnosed ER+PR+HER/2Neu+ in 2008, while going through menopause. I had been on bio-identical hormones for a few months, and my oncologist instructed me to stop all hormone therapy. In short, because there is really no definitive answer to what hormone therapy in general is doing to us. As you can see from all the references above, it's a controversial topic. Whether or not insurance covers it depends on your policy. I would certainly talk to your doctor about your concerns; if you are taking Tamoxifen in addition to hormones, it seems they would be working in opposition to each other.
Treatment choices become very personal, and I encourage you to continue to explore your options. My choice at this point is conservative regarding all treatments, whether "natural" or medical. What did help me with the return of hot flashes is a series of about a dozen acupuncture treatments, and adding a few tablespoons of organic flax seed oil to my salads. We hear it over and over for a multitude of health concerns, to avoid processed foods, increase vegetable and fruit intake, reduce red meat, minimize alcohol, stay active and manage stress. If I steer too far from this course, I pay the price with increased symptoms. I wish you all the best!
May 25, 2011 - 8:28amThis Comment
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