Arimidex and Carpal Tunnel Syndrome?

[Kimina]

I am currently having Herceptin on a 3 weekly basis and Arimidex tablets daily. I wondered if anyone else has been told that the Arimidex tablets can cause Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS)? I am getting severe pins and needles in my left hand and now have a numb left thumb! My right hand also gets the symptoms but to a lesser degree. My heart echo and ECG are fine so no worries there, thank goodness.

My Chiropractor does not think it is CTS and is treating me for a neck/shoulder problem which did seem to help a little (first session yesterday).

While writing, has anybody got some good advice on overcoming the bad joint aches caused due to Herceptin and Arimidex please? I am taking Omega 3 and Glucosamine but haven't reached the '3 months required' stage yet and it is difficult getting moving some days.

Thanks.

[R.B.]

I have looked on NCBI for CTS and fats and did not find much beyond a suggestion that algae might help, which I suppose might extend to seaweed ( which is surprising delicious and "moorish" - it can be bought dried). I do not know if this has been rigourously tested etc.

"And this may not be the only clinical application of microalgae. Another extract may soon be prescribed for carpal tunnel syndrome and joint inflammation. As the Cyanotech CEO explained, natural astaxanthin—trademark BioAstin‘—a pigment and antioxidant produced by the alga Haematococcus, is the most promising treatment for carpal tunnel syndrome short of surgery."

Are you taking fish oil or alternate DHA sources, or just sources of 18:3 linolenic flaxseed etc. and how much of what?

Have you looked at your omega six intake and the arguments for balancing the threes and sixes. If not you might like to look at the posts on this site using the search engine - click on search on the purple bar above. It is key to reduce six as well as increase threes including EPA and DHA for those on average western diets.

In general terms seaweed / marine algae would seem to be a good addition as they contain nutrients we may not normally get, rare minerals, and the things seaweeds / algae are made of.

There have been other posts on herceptin and arimidex and you might like to look at them. I have previously asked the question does herceptin block fat elongation eg making DHA and EPA from alpha-linolenic (C18:3 what you find in flax etc). There was an impled suggestion from the responses that those on fish oil were not experiencing problems - but maybe thay can clarify, and please check the post for yourself.

Please discuss significant dietary changes with your advisors.

I hope this helps

RB

[Kimina]

Thank you for your quick response. I have tried to search on the website for Omega six as you suggest, but don't seem to have found anything specific yet.

You mentioned another website that I am not familiar with - I am in the UK so maybe it's a US site? Please let me know the full name so I can search on it.

Thanks again.

Kim.

[R.B.]

I have not seen anything else specific on CTS. I made the general observation as omega six and lack of three is linked to inflamation. Fats have a wide influence in body processes. I have no specfic information on CTS and know little about it.

Flax seed, flaxseed, fats, omega three, n3 n6 etc might be other terms if the subject was of interest.

There are a number of trials suggesting that long chain omega three may reduce risk of BC. In a French trial based on biopsies of fat as well as excision the women in the third with the highest levels of DHA had a 69% lower risk of the lump being invasive. It is a huge subject and there are insufficent trials for definative answers but the potential upsides are significant and the downsides limited.

Myelin sheathing, nervous system development and maintenance, cell membrane flexibility and composition are from general reading omega three sufficiency (DHA in particular) dependent and excess six can lead to problems some report.

Omega three /six have also been reported as having influence in circulation etc.

NCBI you will find if your enter it into a search engine, and use the search engine within it. It is a very extensive scientific library of trials. It is technical but does give the opportunity to see what is going on and which way the wind is blowing by entering the search terms of interest.


Please do consult with your advisors on dietary changes.

RB

[suzan w]

I am also on Arimidex and Herceptin(8 months now) (check other threads about swollen ankles, and side effects ) still have pretty severe joint aches, mostly knees and thumbs not, started with hips. The thumbs seem to be a common complaint...pretty weird! Some days I feel like a 90 year old, nave trouble getting up out of a chair etc. But once I get going I am OK-or maybe just getting used to it??!! I can do just about anything I could do before diagnosis-hike, snowshoe, etc. Taking glucosamine, Omegas, and a bunch of other supplements...hard to know how much it is helping!!!

[R.B.]

Here is the NCBI link.

http://www.ncbi.nih.gov/

This gives an idea of the number of trials on arthritis and DHA.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/q...=arthritis+dha

And here is an abstract from one of them

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/q...=pubmed_docsum

"This 12-week drug-monitoring study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of Sanhelios Mussel Lyprinol Lipid Complex on 50 adult men and women with inflammatory rheumatoid arthritis. A total of 34 patients required drug therapy before and during the study. By the end of the study, 21 (62%) patients were able to reduce their dosage and 13 were able to terminate drug therapy. At the end of the treatment period, 38% were regarded symptom free, and the number of patients with severe pain decreased significantly from 60% at baseline to 25% at the completion of the trial. A significant effect was observed for each investigated parameter. The special combination of Lyprinol and omega-3 fatty acids was generally very well tolerated, with only one, nonserious adverse event (mild nausea) reported. This dietary supplement may therefore be considered an effective and well-tolerated component of treatment regimens for inflammatory rheumatoid arthritis."


Hence my interest if it helps.

When you say omega threes - are you taking the long chain forms EPA and DHA, - how much and in what form.

If you are only taking flax seed oil / 369 oils etc it may be that they are only part of the solution if arimidex and or hercpetin are intervening in the manifacture of longer chain fats in the body FAS - I have seen suggestion that Herceptin does intervene in fat pathways . Flax oil only contains the 18 carbon member of the omega three family. EPA is 20 carbons and DHA is 22. If the body's system to make them is blocked in whole or part they can only be got from food.

It may be if the body is historically short that the brain and eyes get first call - which might require a higher dosage intially to take effect. From what I have seen the take up by the body is quite quick to a test fro a day or so may give an idea. It is very complex and much is not known and each area is a specialism in itself.


Also how much omega six are you ingesting in your diet approximately.

Finally what was your dietary history.

2 grams a day of DHA is shown in a trial as the point at which uptake trails off but that is presumably for individuals in good health.

Please do talk to your advisors about any dietary change. Fats in particular are very influential in many of the bodies functions.

Thanks

RB

[Kimina]

Thanks for your reply. Like you, I am still doing the walking and horseriding I love. It's just a pain (literally!) when I look like a 90 yr old first thing in the morning and after sitting for any length of time, and my 80 yr old Mum is riding her bike to the shops!!