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A few days ago I posted on this subject and now want to add somemore comments. For me loosing estrogen, from menopause and endometerial cancer which was a TAH-BSO operation no chemo or radiation), left me with what some of you described as "chemo brain". Sex drive about nil also. Then I was put on estrogen, an estradoil patch, and low and behold, my brain started working again! My memory and ability to reason sharply came back. I could remember where I parked my car! I could hold my own in an agrument and remember jokes.
Last summer testastorne was added, by gel on the arm, and my sex drive came roaring back! Had to cut down on it as it was too much. Did have side effects of mustache growing and probably thinned my hair also. It was fun while it lasted. Kind of like going on a vacation to a fun place but have to come home eventually. The kick was not nearly as much when I bought the testastrone level down to something like normal for a younger woman.
Since going off the patches--had a ring and a patch of estradoil also to boost the estrogen in my system, and off the testastrone, I am back to having a brain that has a difficult time recalling things. It could be from stress as this is the same reaction I have under stress, but I think it is the estrogen. Sometimes my mind is just blank when trying to recall things. Forget about remembering jokes--can't remember one.
Now the sex drive, well, we will see. I am under too much stress, had surgery 12-07-04, to think about that.
Since I am ER-PR negative, estrogen might be OK for me, but I don't know. Estrogen only may protect against estrogen postive breast cancer as some study showed, but at this point int he back of my mind, not from any study, I would wonder if it just caused the estrogen negative.
Hope we all get more information about this. I had asked my endocrinologist about testastrone several years ago (he said he had no way of prescribing a correct amount)and just last year, 2004, he offered it to me as if the idea was something new to him.
Janet/FL
THIS IS MY ORIGINAL POST
Hi Meridith
Since I am new to all of this, I am may not have much to add. I will say that following endometrial cancer 2 years ago, I went on estrogen replacement therapy, (it had been condsidered OK to do so) I am now 60 years old, and it was in January of 2004 that I went on a high dose of estrogen. My body seemed to just slurp it up. Then I went on a gel of testastorne applied to the arm. I will tell you that although it could have been a placebo affect, it was wonderful! I felt like a teenager again. I felt totally sexy! I had to cut down that amount as it was an overdose :-(
Then along came breast cancer and I gave all of that up. Since I am at the beginnig of that journey, I can't comment further except that I am in your shoes of being ER, PR negative and am interested in learning more about hormones and breast cancer for this type of turmor.
Janet/FL
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