Handling Fulvestrant side effects?

[Nguyen]

How have you been treated to alleviate Fulvestrant (Faslodex) side effects such as soreness and numbness? Thanks.

Nguyen

[Janet Taylor]

What kind of problems are you having? I have a sore rump for a few days after I receive the shot, but then it goes away.

[Nguyen]

She's been having soreness at the rump that doesn't go away after several weeks. Also she experiences occasional numbness at various places on her body, at whatever body area that has pressure put on it for multiple minutes. Anyway, she's still on a tough loading dose schedule 500mg every two weeks. Many thanks.

Nguyen


Linda's treatment history:
10/2008: Fulvestrant, Femara, Herceptin
04/2008 - 09/2008: Herceptin and Exemestane
01/2008: Oophorectomy
01/2005 - 4/2008: Herceptin (readded) and Femara
07/2004: It returned again via several small nodules in the lung
10/2002: NED (via CT and CA27.29)!
10/2001 - 01/2005: Femara, Fosamax
12/2000 - 10/2001: Herceptin and Navelbine
12/2000: lung metastatic was diagnosed (a few small nodules)
02/1998 - 12/2000: Daily Tamoxifen
05/1997 - 04/1998: Modified Radical Mastectomy, many many cycles of chemo
regiments (CAF,Taxol, Carpoplatin, Thiotepa, Navelbine,
Taxotere), including HDC, and radiation
05/1997: First diagnosed with BC stage 3A, ER+, PR+, HER2 +,
poorly differetiated, nuclear grade 3.

[Nguyen]

Perhaps this would work.

Nguyen

And in another interview (Breast Cancer Update (2005): Clinical experience with fulvestrant), Dr. Charles L Vogel noted that fulvestrant is a very good drug with minimal toxicity, and not much buttock pain even with a five-cc injection, and with less degree of joint discomfort that seen with the aromatase inhibitors, so that it is certainly a viable alternative to aromatase inhibitors in patients who have disease progression on tamoxifen. The pain of the intramuscular site injection can be effectively mitigates either by Emla Cream (lidocaine 2.5% and prilocaine 2.5%) by patch applied one-hour before injection, or somewhat more effectively, by vapocoolant (Fluori-Methane) which unlike Emla Cream is immediate in onset of action and relatively inexpensive (Mawhorter et al., J Travel Med (2004): Topical vapocoolant quickly and effectively reduces vaccine-associated pain: results of a randomized, single-blinded, placebo-controlled study).