testosterone - CAN IT HELP?
 

My oncologist looked online and saw a study out of San Francisco, I think it was UCSF, that used testosterone in treating vaginal dryness & libido probs in woman with ER POS breast cancer. How do I find out what the early clinical trial research is showing, side effects, good results, etc? I hate to try something new and find out the hard way that this gives more headaches than estrogen, or that I will now grow a beard and mustache. My doc was pretty low key, said try it and see if it helps. I wish she'd try it first and report back to me:)

Has anyone ever used testosterone cream? I am ER/PR negative, but using estrogen cream was giving me migraine problems big time. Totally solved the va-j-j probs, except created tremendous headache probs, so it didn't matter that I was "open for business".

Has anyone who is ER/PR negative considered using the estrogen patch? That is my latest thinking unless I decide to try this testosterone.

I want a healthy sex life, and right now it's a challenge due to physical discomfort. I'm tired of having to "be creative". I just wanna...well, you sisters understand. It's such a rarely discussed by the doctors, but important side effect from treatment. It is all about QUALITY OF LIFE.

Here's the clinical trial recipe:
Testosterone Cream 1% micronized in velvachol - 0.5 gm of cream vaginally each night for two weeks, then 3 times a week for total of 12 weeks of treatment

Thanks for your help. Funny how I won't make a move unless I get feedback from you all!

Re: testosterone - CAN IT HELP?
 

Sorry I can't help Flori, a friend of mine was on testosterone shots or pills to give her a break from chemo when her cancer was very advanced. Obviously the cream would have far less side effects or risk factor's but she was warned her voice would get lower and facial hair would increase.
It did relieve a lot of her symptoms though as her body was worn out from eleven years of chemo.
Hope someone can help you and do sympathize, thankfully despite my early ooph and tx vaginal dryness is one side effect I've managed to dodge so far:)

Re: testosterone - CAN IT HELP?
 

Not sure how to interpret the info but testosterone/androgens seem to be studies in BC:


Steroids. 2009 Oct 24. [Epub ahead of print]
Conjugated and non-conjugated androgens differentially modulate specific early gene transcription in breast cancer in a cell-specific manner.

Notas G, Pelekanou V, Castanas E, Kampa M.
Laboratory of Experimental Endocrinology, University of Crete, School of Medicine, Heraklion GR-71003, Greece.
The role of androgen in breast cancer development is not fully understood, although androgen receptors (ARs) have been identified in breast cancer clinical samples and cell lines. However the whole spectrum of androgen actions cannot be accounted to the classic AR activation and the possible existence of a cell surface-AR has been suggested. Indeed, androgen, like all steroids, has been reported to trigger membrane-initiated signaling activity and exert specific actions, including ion channels and kinase signaling pathway activation, ultimately affecting gene expression. However, the molecular nature of membrane androgen sites represents another major persisting question. In the present study, we investigated early transcriptional effects of testosterone and the impermeable testosterone-BSA conjugate, in two breast cancer cell lines (T47D and MDA-MB-231), in an attempt to decipher specific genes modified in each case, providing evidences about specific membrane-initiating actions. Our data indicate that the two agents affect the expression of several genes. A group of genes were commonly affected while others were uniquely modified by each agent, including interaction with growth factors and K(+)-channels. In MDA-MB-231 cells, that are AR negative, the majority of genes affected by testosterone were also affected by testosterone-BSA indicating a membrane-initiated action. Subsequent analysis revealed that the two agents trigger different molecular pathways and cellular/molecular functions, suggestive of a molecular or functional heterogeneity of membrane and intracellular AR. In addition, the reported phenotypic interactions of membrane-acting androgen with growth factor were verified at the transcriptomic level, as well as their ion channel-modifying effects. Finally an interesting interplay between membrane-acting androgen with inflammation-related molecules, with potential clinical implications was revealed.

PMID: 19857505 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]




Exp Cell Res. 2005 Jul 1;307(1):41-51. Epub 2005 Apr 7.
Opposing effects of estradiol- and testosterone-membrane binding sites on T47D breast cancer cell apoptosis.

Kampa M, Nifli AP, Charalampopoulos I, Alexaki VI, Theodoropoulos PA, Stathopoulos EN, Gravanis A, Castanas E.
Department of Experimental Endocrinology, University of Crete, School of Medicine, P.O. Box 2208, Heraklion, GR-71003, Greece.
Classical steroid mode of action involves binding to intracellular receptors, the later acting as ligand-activated nuclear transcription factors. Recently, membrane sites for different steroids have been also identified, mediating rapid, non-genomic, steroid actions. Membrane sites for estrogen and androgen have been found in a number of different cell types, bearing or not classical intracellular receptors. In the present study, with the use of radioligand binding, flow cytometry and confocal laser microscopy, we report that T47D human breast cancer cells express specific and saturable membrane receptors for both estrogen (K(D) 4.06 +/- 3.31 nM) and androgen (K(D) 7.64 +/- 3.15 nM). Upon activation with BSA-conjugated, non-permeable ligands (E(2)-BSA and testosterone-BSA), membrane estrogen receptors protect cells from serum-deprivation-induced apoptosis, while androgen receptors induce apoptosis in serum-supplemented T47D cells. In addition, co-incubation of cells with a fixed concentration of one steroid and varying concentrations of the other reversed the abovementioned effect (apoptosis for androgen, and anti-apoptosis for E(2)), suggesting that the fate of the cell depends on the relative concentration of either steroid in the culture medium. We also report the identification of membrane receptors for E(2) and androgen in biopsy slides from breast cancer patients. Both sites are expressed, with the staining for membrane E(2) being strongly present in ER-negative, less differentiated, more aggressive tumors. These findings suggest that aromatase inhibitors may exert their beneficial effects on breast cancer by also propagating the metabolism of local steroids towards androgen, inducing thus cell apoptosis through membrane androgen receptor activation.

PMID: 15922725 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Re: testosterone - CAN IT HELP?
 

I've used the testosterone cream. It didn't help. Although for some weird reason, it seemed to work (with libido) the first time I used it. But not after. No side effects.

For vaginal dryness, I am using VagiFem. That works great.

Re: testosterone - CAN IT HELP?
 

Flori
I am like you, i want to know more about all the side effects...what good is it if you feel amazingly sexy right after you shave your beard and mostouche!

Re: testosterone - CAN IT HELP?
 

My doc won't give me anything with estrogen even though I was ER-PR-. And I don't want to shave, either. I volunteered to be part of a research study at OSU, but haven't heard anything. Can't believe they can put a man on the moon, but they can't solve this problem for ladies like us!

Re: testosterone - CAN IT HELP?
 

Re: testosterone - CAN IT HELP?
 

tried testosterone cream...nope
nothing seems to work...darn
so frustrating.........however, life IS good!!!

Re: testosterone - CAN IT HELP?
 

I have found that testosterone cream is the ONLY thing that helped with libido. It is still working for me after several years. It works a lot better if you don't use it daily. I use it 5 days on and 2 days off-my doc said that way the receptors aren't constantly saturated. I use tiny doses; you will know if you take too much and the effects are reversible if you do. I know to back off if I get acne or become agrumentative.
Also, since my bc diagnosis, I stopped estradiol cream (the most comnmon type prescribed) and am using ESTRIOL, which is a weaker estrogen. I feel it is safer for me. It has to be compounded as there is no FDA approved product. Progesterone is a must, as it may be bc protective and has other benefits, including balancing the other hormones.