Tamoxifen & Weight Loss

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Njkeen16
Njkeen16 Posts: 5 Member
Hello All, I'm new to the group, and wondered if anyone seems to struggle with weight loss when on Tamoxifen? I've been on it for just over a year now and although Im much more active than I used to be, Im finding it SO hard to lose the lbs! I'm mostly an eater of non processed foods and dont eat dairy products.
Ive heard of so many people putting on weight with Tamoxifen, but surely you can lose aswell??! Any tips appreciated!! Thank you!
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Replies

  • teddyedward04
    teddyedward04 Posts: 22 Member
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    Hi I have been on Tamoxifen since October 2012. I have managed to,lose weight but VERY slowly. I really can't afford to over eat at all as the weight goes on very quickly. I have upped my exercise as well. Unfortunately the old saying 'eat less move more' is the only thing works for me. Good luck
  • rigidchopper
    rigidchopper Posts: 1 Member
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    I recall the oncologist telling me that some women do lose weight when taking tamoxifen but no one I know did (unfortunately I know a lot of BC patients). At one point I had gained 50 pounds and the only thing I found that worked for weight loss was a high fat - moderate protein - low carb diet. That allowed me to trim down quite a bit and the rest of the weight (15 lbs) came off pretty easily once I finished taking tamoxifen. The weight loss and maintenance strategies I used before BC just didn't work anymore so you might have to try a few different things to see what works for you now. :)
  • Gorger
    Gorger Posts: 100 Member
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    I have before and after pictures of me when I was on Tamoxifen. My face was big and round while I was on the drug. Yes, it is easier to gain weight on the drug so you have to be very careful. Don't forget to get your eyes checked while on Tamoxifen. It screwed up my eye site. It can sometime causes cataracts. After menopause they can put you on Letrozole if the Tamoxifen is bothering you. Both drugs created difficulties for me. I think letrozole caused me to have a bit of a stroke but apparently both drugs can do that. Also get your cholesterol checked as Tamoxifen can affect that too. Aspirin is supposed to also help stop reoccurrence but they don't tell you that. Google aspirin/ advil and breast cancer.
  • Njkeen16
    Njkeen16 Posts: 5 Member
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    Thank you for your thoughts ladies!!
  • kraft_kris
    kraft_kris Posts: 157 Member
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    I just saw this post....I have been so hesitant to take Tamoxifen, but I did not realize that this was also another side effect! I have a really hard time losing weight anyway...ugh, this is one more reason NOT to take it!
  • Nektariosmom
    Nektariosmom Posts: 69 Member
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    Hi there. I started tamoxifen in Feb 2013. I am bound and determined to not let it win the weight battle! I'm ready to fight! If anyone has any tips, I'm open to them.
  • mbryanlpc
    mbryanlpc Posts: 100 Member
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    I've been taking Tamoxifen now since July 2013. It does seem harder to lose, but definitely not impossible. The biggest struggle for me is that craving I get for sugar. I am trying to balance that with a lot of fruit, and it is helping. I am maintaining right now, and some weeks am showing a loss, so you can do it, just have to work twice as hard as pre-Tamoxifen. Has anyone else been recommended to stay on it for 10 years. At my last checkup, that's what my oncologist recommended. Is that crazy??
  • SuzieQ430
    SuzieQ430 Posts: 44 Member
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    I was told ten years as well. Apparently studies have found that ten years is better than five. That gives me nine and a half years left!
  • 4athomej
    4athomej Posts: 11
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    I'm 10 days in to Tamoxifen...I was told 5 for sure with the option of 10 years...guess we'll be playing that one by ear...
  • mbryanlpc
    mbryanlpc Posts: 100 Member
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    Well, guess I'm glad to hear I'm not alone in this 10 year journey :)
  • Gorger
    Gorger Posts: 100 Member
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    Wow! Ten years is a long time. I know they can divide the dosage into two times a day instead of one time a day and that seemed to work better for me at the time I was on it. I am off it prematurely- because it did not agree with me- but I wouldn't recommend going off it.
  • TASoto
    TASoto Posts: 25 Member
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    I had a negative estrogen cancer diagnosis and did not have a preventative maintenance anything to go on was pretty down about it for awhile but I am leaving my healing in GODS hands and that's all I have . So that being said I am 50 years old and I have problems LOSING the weight as well, so on or off meds extra weight is just HARD to get rid of.. I think if we keep at it with consistency the stubborn weight will eventually come off, do you agree ????
  • mbryanlpc
    mbryanlpc Posts: 100 Member
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    Absolutely agree!!
  • SuzieQ430
    SuzieQ430 Posts: 44 Member
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    Yes, losing weight as we get older is hard. Consistency is the key.
  • BEVnj
    BEVnj Posts: 11 Member
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    i am newly diagnosed and started taking Tx 2 weeks ago. yes that is what the latest recommendations are, 10 years hormonal therapy. after i am in menopause i will likely be switched to a different medication [AI].

    i was diagnosed at 50, back when my mother had BC 12 years ago, she was 78. i think as younger women are finding BC thru early detection, they are being prescribed 10 year HT since our life expectancy is so much longer than prior generations of BC survivors. not sure if this is true, i would ask your MO
  • KNAMsMum
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    Anyone taking Arimidex? I am 54 and I had DCIS tumor and had one breast removed. Now I am on Arimidex possibly for 5 years. My weight started going up last year prior to the cancer (April 2014) but since has gone up more. It is more emotional eating esp at night. I presently have a cough leftover from a cold and it scares me that something is in my lungs. Or I see stuff on my face and think skin cancer. Do these fears ever go away?
  • tishsmith101
    tishsmith101 Posts: 1,587 Member
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    My cancer was ER+, gained 20 lbs on chemo and just started Tamoxifen 2 weeks ago. Adjusted my eating habits and amped up my workouts since I need to get the chemo weight off before I can tackle my pre-cancer excess weight. Seeing results after two weeks of hard work.
  • mbryanlpc
    mbryanlpc Posts: 100 Member
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    KNAMsMum, I've gone through the fears a lot over the past year, since I finished my last radiation treatment, a headache must mean a tumor, etc, but my doctor said that as time goes by, I won't worry as much. Hoping she is right, and we both stop worrying so much soon :)
  • Gorger
    Gorger Posts: 100 Member
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    I thought I was going to die in 2001. It's now 2015.
  • mbryanlpc
    mbryanlpc Posts: 100 Member
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    Congrats Gorger :smiley: