blood pressure

[juanita]

Before bc my blood pressure was always low. Now once I've done chemo, rads and I think am almost done with herceptin i am battling high blood pressure. Have been fighting it for almost a year now. Has anyone else had this prblem? My mugas have all been okay. I had one yesterday and though I don't know my score she said I have a really good, strong heartbeat. Is there any connection to chemo or herceptin to the high blood pressure?

[janet/FL]

Hi Juanita
Mine runs about the same or lower than before Herceptin.
Janet

[sassy]

Juanita,

My BP went up on steriods with taxol/herceptin, and never came back down. I've been on BP meds for about 9 months now. I am also on Arimidex, which probably contributes to elevated BP. Although I am on lowest dose now, I am considering asking my GP to up my meds to help with fluid retention, also a problem with Arimidex.

Sassy
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[Bev]

Hi, Mine is slightly lower than before too. Weight gain can make it go up. I can go to 2 dif docs within a week and have readings 15pts apart. I asked the onc nurse and she said technique, how tight they torque the cuff, can effect the reading. BB

[Lani]

are you retaining water on Herceptin (rings don't fit, ankles swollen)?

More fluid means the heart has to pump at a greater pressure to move all of it around.

Did you have radiation therapy? It can affect the heart as well and other parts of the circulatory system.

The cancer itself has receptors for renin-angiotensin which is part of the kidney's system which regulates blood pressure. Just having receptors, does not mean it is secreted, but implies some positive or negative feedback related to the system may be involved.

Are you under stress (and who isn't?) Cortisol which is secreted under stressful conditions can increase blood pressure.

If you got steroids with your chemo it might have upset your balance of cortisol production.

Are you on antihormonals? AIs (as well as tamoxifen) but more with AIs, if I recall can change your blood lipid profile. That is more longterm but can lead to narrowing of the arteries and higher blood pressure...

Have you gained weight?...Do you smoke?

There are a multitude of reasons I have listed and many more I haven't and probably more that haven't been looked at or enumerated yet.

List those things you can affect (weight, fluid retention, stress, smoking) and see which of those you or your doctor think you can influence, rather than focusing on the ones we don't know enough about or can't easily be changed.

Hope this helps!

[tousled1]

I am just the opposite. I had high blood pressure for 4 years before I was diagnosed. Amazingly, about 2 months after DX my blood pressure went down. My family physician took me off both of the blood pressure medications and since then my blood pressure has been normal. Go figure!

[Susan]

I too, always had low blood pressure readings all my life. My blood pressure started to raise just after chemo. I think it was just as radiation started. It's stayed high while on herceptin too. I'm on maxide now for it. It's a diuritic and it seems to be working. I'm hoping once I'm done with herceptin, it will go back to my "normal"........I'm the same weight, maybe a little less. I'm not on any other drugs, except to faslodex, but the blood pressure started to rise before i was on that.....so i guess who knows? Good Luck

Sue

[MJo]

My blood pressure would rise 20 points while I was getting Taxol. It was weird sitting in the recliner and seeing my blood pressure readings rise from 120/80 to 140/90. But now that I've finished chemo it stays around 120, I'm happy to say.

[Mary Anne in TX]

I have had low blood pressure for as long as they have been testing me (age 61 now) until I started chemo. I started with Andriamycin and Taxotere X 3. Now on Taxol, Carboplatin, Herceptin X 5 done. Mine stays high. ma

[DeborahNC]

My BP would go to 160/100 every time I went for infusion. It settled down after I got home.

My blood pressure was low before Herceptin. It started climbing on Herceptin to 140/82. My onc. & dr. decided just to monitor it. My onc. said if my blood pressure drops once I'm done with Herceptin she'll report it to the company as a side-effect from herceptin.