[Becky]

First - it only takes 3 weeks for Tamoxifen to be out of your body. That said, your onc may want to wait a couple of weeks after that to see what goes on with your blood work. I am sure they are running LH, FSH and estradiol (do not let them forget estradiol as it is the most important reading). If your bloodwork shows that you are not quite in menopause yet, you can ask for Lupron or Zoladex shots that will shut down your ovaries so you can take Femara. You could also contemplate an oophorectomy.

Femara or any AI can cause side effects. Since you have been reading this board for almost 3 yrs, you have seen that many women on this board had side effects (mostly joint pain) that was relieved when switching to another AI. Therefore, if you have alot of joint pain on Femara, try Arimidex or try Aromosin.

As for being off Tamoxifen for 6-12 weeks, I wouldn't worry about it one second. Tamoxifen (and also the AIs) give sustained protection for yrs after you stop using them. This is documented. Being off won't make a difference so rest easy about this.

Discuss chemical shut down of the ovaries with your onc. Also be watchful if you are postmenopausal. Make sure you get bloodwork on the AI after 3 months (unless you get the ovaries shutdown chemically or surgically) as AIs can cause ovaries to come to life (this happened to me which is why I got my ooph (among other reasons)). This does NOT mean it will happen to you but I feel we are all here to learn from each other's experiences. I was almost 47 at the time.

Cheers