Anyone having more uti's after chemo?
 

I am nearly three years out from two seperate tumors in each breast. The second one was er-pr-her+. I did tch and herceptin for a year.

Lately I have been having a lot of uti's. At least 4 in the last six months. I hate to keep going on antibotics as I do not want to become resistant.

Just wondering if any of you are having this problem.

Re: Anyone having more uti's after chemo?
 

Were you premenopausal before chemo and did you go into permanent menopause with chemo.

Did you just go into permanent menopause? What happened to you also happened to me. I was premenopausal before cancer but after treatment but before Herceptin was over, I had my ovaries removed since I was 50% ER+ but PR negative. In this situation, Tamoxifen does not work very well and I wanted to take Arimidex. Since I was 46 then, I had the ovaries removed and then went on Arimidex. These 2 things made my estrogen plummet. Estrogen keeps the vaginal wall thick but also maintains the bladder. Without estrogen, you get bladder thinning - hence, for some women, uti's. I got 7 in a row so I ended up on maintenance Macrobid but only after sexual intercourse (because that was always my trigger - took a pill right after sex). After a while, I stopped and my body adjusted. Time does "heal" this and I didn't get anymore uti's. I think it is worse in the beginning.

If were you, I would see a urologist for some guidance on this issue. I also took (and still take) cranberry tablets. I don't know if they did anything but I took them anyway. Uti's are a pain, especially recurring ones. I feel your frustration from being in the "know".

Re: Anyone having more uti's after chemo?
 

I'm opposite. I had frequent UTI's leading up to my diagnosis, then only a few since. Like Becky I was on maintenance Macrobid prior to my diagnosis. I echo her advice, see a urologist and let him/her check you through. For me they scoped my bladder and had me come in for tests after each round of antibiotics to make sure the infection had really actually cleared and not just beat down.