Wondering about weight gain and loss

[AlaskaAngel]

I saw this article on the news forum....

"Women who gain weight throughout adulthood rather than maintaining a stable weight may have an increased risk for breast cancer, according to a report in the October 22 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine (http://archinte.ama-assn.org/)."

I wondered how many of us gain weight during treatment and how many lose weight and how many stay about the same... and because I gained 20 pounds with treatment (which included dexamethasone), I wondered how much of the weight gain caused by treatment adds to the risk. It sounds like weight loss wasn't a good thing, either.

I've seen some posts by bc survivors who said they refused the steroids that are given with treatment and they said they did fine without them. I just wonder how necessary the steroids really are, and if they actually might increase our risk. The weight gain itself is hard enough to deal with without any ADDED risk, since it is both depressing AND means we are creating more aromatase with every pound gained.

Pondering,

AlaskaAngel

[Sheila]

Alaska Angel
I know what you mean about the weight gain, I am up 30# in 4 years of treatment, and 14 of that has been since June with the addition of Decadron.....oh my, I am wondering if it will level off.

[dhealey]

I was about 15 pound overwieght before my diagnosis, but I exercised everyday, so I felt I was still being healthy. I was also one who lost weight during treatment 25 pounds and it has not come back. I still have issues with eating certain foods and nausea with reflux inspite of taking prevacid twice a day. It is interesting how some gain and others lose even when on the same treatment plan.

[Brenda_D]

I gained weight in adulthood, after my second marriage.

I wondered about that risk factor and my getting BC, but my BC isn't ER, PR positive. So that wouldn't be a factor, right?

[Mary Jo]

Good Morning Friends,

I was just the opposite. I quit smoking 12 years prior to my diagnosis, lost 30 pounds 11 years prior to diagnosis and exercised faithfully all of those years. My diet wasn't the best though. I ate way too much sugar.

After diagnosis and treatment I gained 17 pounds. It didn't have anything to do with diet but drugs I know. I tried but the weight came on. I even exercised throughout treatment (the best I could). The weight didn't start dropping till herceptin ended.

I averaged about 153 pounds after I lost the 30 pounds and kept that weight off for 11 years. Now, I exercise a bit more vigoursly, eat wayyyyyyyyyyyyy less sugar and average about 148 pounds.

I also thought the darn weight gain during treatment just added insult to injury, LOL!! Geez, we have to go through treatment, feel crumby, become bald AND gain weight. Where is the justice????????????????????

Hugs,

Mary Jo

[TSund]

We asked onc to cut down the daily steroid with no ill effect. She immediately took off one full day, and then we took another 1/2 day off. I think Ruth could have cut back even more, but she was nervous about it.

[madubois63]

Oh, Mary Jo - That's what I always said - "Where is the justice?" I get cancer, and I gain weight - what the heck??? I had just lost 30 lb on Weight Watchers and bought a new wardrobe when I was first diagnosed. After ACT, surgery, radiation and Tamoxifen, I was about 40 pounds heavier. No amount of excercise or dieting moved the scale - very frustrating! Then came the relapse. Between depression and lots of medications, including steroids, I gained a few more pounds. Then came the leukemia, and I was up and down weightwise until they gave me REALLY heavy steroids (140 mg a day)...I was crawling up the walls, shaking all the time and never sleeping. I ate everything in sight but still lost over 60 pounds. I am now down to 15 mg of steroids a day and kind of miss the heavy dose - I got so much done...It was a heck of a way to loose the weight, but hey I look good!!

[Becky]

I was overweight to begin with but I was in the loser club. Lost 21 lbs during treatment (so nauseous I couldn't eat healthy and refused not to - could have tolerated ice cream, pudding but I couldn't let myself do it) and another 14 afterwards. I would love to lose another 10 but I am figuring it is not to be. Even with running (I probably regain muscle vs fat) I have not budged. I am blaming ooph (menopause), getting older and Arimidex (as the 10-12 lbs is all belly fat).

[MJo]

I was a yo-yo dieter my entire life. When I was diagnosed in October 2005, I was normal weight (for me). Gained 40 pounds during treatment. I ate a lot of ice cream -- in fact, it's all I could eat during A/C treatment. Finished Herceptin in November 2006. I have lost 25 pounds in the past three months on weight watchers core plan. I think my body had to get back to normal before I could start to lose the excess weight.

[tousled1]

My weight has always been pretty steady. When I went through my initial treatment I did loose about 20 lbs and right now I'd say I've gained 10 of it back. But you must remember muscle is heavier than fat!

[harrie]

My wt fluctuated around 5 lbs up and down during my treatment of taxotere, carboplatin, and herceptin. Overall, I ended up with not much wt gain at all and no loss from where I started.

The corticosteroids are important to take from my understanding. For one thing, it prevents the hand/foot syndrome.

Maryanne

[janet/FL]

I had just lost almost 30 pounds on Atkins prior to diagnosis. I maintained the weight loss on steroids, Taxotere and Herceptin as I was constantly in motion. I continued to eat way too much but without the steroids I have gained about 15 pounds since treatment ended July of 06. Now to try to lose them as of course, all my cute new clothes, are way too small!
Angel and others
I have only heard of one person taking Taxotere with out steiods. I was told it was a must. I would be intrested in learning if others have done the same or even tried to do so as my brother is to begin Taxotere for prostate cancer and wants to avoid steriods.

[Christine MH-UK]

I have always been really steady and thin.

I was steady during chemo and rads, despite steroids. The steroids with anthracyclines are just to avoid nausea, but the steroids with taxotere are partly to avoid a very serious allergic reaction, so I don't think they can be safely skipped. I didn't have steroids with herceptin and was fine.

I gained weight on herceptin, partly because it made me so fatigued and sleepy. Since coming off I have struggled too, because of going through chemopause. I don't know how much I have gained, but my clothing is definitely tighter and I need to lose a few pounds.

[AlaskaAngel]

I had CAF (5 years ago, when that or CEF was the more common regimen, or CMF), and possibly steroids could be more necessary with the taxanes than with the regimen I had.

But the question still is, are we decreasing our risk with a chemotherapy but increasing it by adding drugs that influence weight gain and loss, if there is any significant amount of truth in the study that indicates that fluctuating weight puts one at higher risk? Maybe, just maybe, the effects on insulin are canceling out some of the benefit of doing chemo to some degree. I just think it is bizarre that until recently so much has been spent to develop toxic solutions to the problem and so little emphasis has been placed on understanding the endocrine system (other than thyroid problems or diabetes....)

A.A.

[R.B.]

Fluctuating weight.

Women with lower levels of long chain omega threes have a higher risk of lumps being invasive.

Yo - yo diets may deplete omega threes and make the omega three six balance worse. This may also apply to fat burning diets.

People on diets often have restricted or skewed fat intakes.

Balancing the omega threes and sixes and ensuring an adequate supply of the long chain omega three based on a number of mechanisms may reduce the risk of breast cancer.

Please discuss dietary changes with a doctor. Fish oil can thin blood etc.