Faslodex for Breast Cancer, Metastatic User Reviews

• KJW
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• December 28, 2023

"I've had metastatic breast cancer for 5+ years. I had tried the other 3 hormone blockers and all 3 left me crippled with joint pain. Then I tried Faslodex and no pain! I had extensive bone mets and now I have none. Combined with Ibrance, these 2 drugs are modern medicine miracles! The injections 1x a month aren't that bad. The smelly pee is no big deal. I feel a little funky the day after, like a bit run down, but I can still do things fine. Other than that, I literally have NO side effects the rest of the month from Faslodex. I've been on it for 5 years! If I had read some of these negative reviews before deciding on this drug, they would have possibly stopped me. What a shame. Just try it and see if you are like most people and tolerate it well (according to my oncologist). Best of luck to you all."

• Jane
• June 4, 2020

"I want to warn you all about this drug. A very close person to me died because of Faslodex. She was put on it after the previous drug stopped working and even though she had changes on her liver the doctor decided to put her on Faslodex. Her physical state was very good at that point. Already after the first injection she started experiencing severe pain in her lower back. Then from one injection to another, her state was getting worse. Her liver got inflamed and she couldn't eat normally. It got to the point where she couldn't walk anymore, from severe pains and weakness. She died in pain, not knowing what was happening to her, and doctors couldn't explain anything, despite numerous exams. Final diagnosis was general metastasis - while only two weeks before her death she had all the exams that showed nothing. Therefore - please think twice before you trust your doctor. If your reaction to Faslodex is as bad, stop it immediately and stay away from it because it's POISON."

• Marlene
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• December 4, 2023

"I have had metastatic HER+ HER2- breast cancer for 5 years. I was put on Ibrance plus Faslodex. After 2 years, I had to discontinue the Ibrance because of serious GI problems. My CA-15 was at 65 at that time. I continued Faslodex and started taking turmeric with curcumin, and my CA-15 dropped to 27. Over time, the Faslodex injections started causing too much inflammation, including back, hip, and joint pain, plus bladder pain. My teeth and gums also started hurting, so I had to discontinue the injections."

• Anony...
• January 18, 2012

"I was diagnosed with Metastic Breast Cancer five years ago and have been on Faslodex for four years which has made my cancer stable. The side effects I experience are; sweating, hot flashes again, severe bone pain, nausea, fatigue big time, constipation, etc. It is worth it to me because it is all tolerable and the other alternative is my cancer would start growing again. I call this my chemo because it is stopping my cancer. I am also losing all my teeth because of dry mouth and don't know if that is from the Faslodex or the harsh chemo I was on before."

• Anonymous
• November 15, 2009

"I am a 2 year survivor of metastatic breast disease to bone. The injection itself is painful, but very few side effects for me. Tiredness, pain at injection site and sore throat are most persistent side effects. I like the fact that I only have to get it once a month."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• June 7, 2023

"I am on 500 mg of this medication. I really hate this medication it is pretty much ruining my life. Now I’m getting muscle pain and joint pain. I have dry eyes and dry skin. I have anxiety all the time and that causes me to have depression. I really want to get off of it, but I can’t because of my cancer. I am having difficulty walking due to severe pain in my right leg not sure if it’s from the medication, but from what I’ve been reading that’s a side effect."

• Candy...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 3, 2020

"I am 76 and was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic breast cancer in bones 21 months ago. Have been on Arimidex till it now shows spots in liver and surrounding lymph nodes. Have had 3 shots of Faslodex. Two had no ill effects but one has left huge lumps because the medication was not heated and the shot was placed higher and released faster than the other two. Make sure the nurse heats it!!! Tomorrow I am supposed to start Ibrance but wonder if the 7 months it supposedly adds to my life is worth the side effects. Many thanks to all of you who have taken the time to post. It has been helpful. It made me realize that the pain in my jaw is probably from the bone strengthening infusion I get. And lastly I was surprised and encouraged that some of you have lived so long with cancer."

• Gene
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• March 15, 2019

"My wife has been on this med for 5 years now. She started it right after her cancer returned and had spread to her spine and hip. She has all the same side effects you guys talk about and where it was the first week following her injection was bad the longer she has been on it this time is starting to extend. How effective is faslodex - well it has stopped all growth, it has not reversed it however it has kept it stable all this time. For the lady who asked about the dental issues my wife has had the same issue and is loosing teeth. It is known as mandibular necrosis and it is usually cause by the shot they give to strengthen her bones . Has anyone else been on the med for longer than 5 years?"

• Lambo
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• November 29, 2020

"I'm currently on faslodex/Letrozole for 18 months. Prior to faslodex I was on Ibrance 33 months before I had progression. I have joint pain, nausea, night sweats etc. Usually 2 weeks a month I'm totally fatigued. My good days are great! I have scans this week & hope that the disease is stable. I have mets to lungs,& bones. Thriving 4 yrs 3 mo & feel I'm doing well @ 67!"

• Mini
• August 23, 2019

"I was diagnosed with Metastatic Breast Cancer to the bones 6 years and 4 mos ago. Initially I was treated with Letrozole and Xgeva worked for me for about 4 yrs 8 mos but then the found some active spots on my spine again. I had more Radiation and Have been on Faslodex, Ibrance and Xgeva ever since. I don’t get bad reactions from Faslodex. If the nurse warms up the Faslodex before it is injected it is easier for the nurses to inject and it feels better. The area of the injection is a bit tender for a couple days but nothing bad. My urine smells like ammonia or something for a couple days. I really don’t get side effects from Faslodex. I have terrible dry mouth but I take many meds. Lately I have been horribly tired but I see the Dr tomorrow. To anyone that has jaw pain that is probably from your Xgeva and can be very painful and definitely something the Dr needs to know. Please call your Dr. I hope you are all doing well!"

• Laureen
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• September 26, 2020

"I have been on Faslodex for 5 years now with no discernible side affects. My bloodwork and cat scans have all been good so I am happy with the drug. I can see from other comments that some people have had some terrible side affects so have gone off it. We all have different reactions and all we can do is keep searching until we find a drug that our bodies can handle. Thank god we have many more choices than we did 40 years ago and that we have free medical coverage here in Canada."

• Toula
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 9, 2021

"I was relatively stable despite mets in bone, I was able to walk and function reasonably well. After the first fulvestrant I had digestive problems and tiredness. After the 2nd I had bone pain (new mets) and generalised muscle pain especially shoulders, trigeminal neuralgia possibly from brain mets and new breast lesions. I feel as if this medication has finished me off. Doctors do not take these bad outcomes seriously, the attitude is that it was going to happen anyway"

• Sunny
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 16, 2019

"I was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer, mets to bone, this past April. I have been on Faslodex,(5 months) Xgeva (4 months) & Ibrance (2+ months). My Dr. has weaned me off everything because of side effects of EXTREME fatigue, weakness, nausea, shortness of breath, bone pain, dizziness, low while blood cells (wbc) which is from the Ibrance). I can tell the Xgeva was responsible for the majority on my weakness, but the Faslodex still has be so weak that I want to buy a walker. I can also tell you that my nurse warmed my shot for 20 to 30 minutes & gave me my injections high on my butt, with no weight on the corresponding leg & that I had no pain whatsoever. Also used Biotin mouthwash per dentist. I have two weeks until Faslodex is entirely out of my system. It did work in healing my lesions per my CT scans its just the side effects were too debilitating."

• Sweet...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• December 19, 2020

"I've been on Faslodex 2 years. Diagnosed with pleural mets. Yes, there are side effects; moody, bone pain, flu like syndrome for a few days...BUT all are managed well. I also take Verzenio. My liver functions are fine and my disease has not progressed at all. It's tough at times but worth it."

• Honee
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• December 17, 2020

"For 8 months I had injections in my butt every 28 days it did lower my estrogen . After stopping because of chronic injection pain they tried injection in the thigh. It’s been four months since last butt shots and 3 months since thigh shot. The pain is still there and very hard sometimes, I really believe nerve damage is cause, I’ve been back on letrozole for 2 months but still experience the chronic sporadic burning, numbing butt and thighs . Besides that it made me smell of burnt motor oil. Drs brush it off and say “ oh I’ve never heard that before”"

• Jane
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 4, 2022

"Nasty drug. I have post herpatic neuralgia, this has increased the severity of the pain. I have diarrhoea, and extreme lethargy. Only had 3 doses. Think the cure worse than the complaint. Seriously considering stopping treatment, and taking pot luck."

• Hilly...
• November 18, 2016

"I am 4 years 9 months survivor of metastatic breast disease to bone. The injection itself is painful, but very few side effects for me. Tiredness, pain at injection site and sore throat dry mouth are most persistent side effects. Tingling and burning sensation on right side of injection site."

• Seda
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• January 19, 2020

"I am breast cancer stage 4, or spread to cervix spine and lung. I have been on the injection for 7 years and it has kept the cells from growing. Minimal side effects. The biggest problem is the cost. Even with Insurance it's over $800 a month. I may need to stop the injections."

• Honee
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• October 10, 2020

"Have been on faslodex for 8 months, my butt gets so sore from injections , So we tried in upper thigh. One week after my injection my thighs are numb on the sides to my knee. I get a Burnt oil smell in urine and just all around body smell for 3 days after. My vision has changed also. I do not look forward to injections"

• roadr...
• September 4, 2018

"I've been on the shots for 5 months ...the first 3 months I received the shots from another Dr. and they were painful in administration AND for 2-3 days after. I changed Dr.'s and the nurse that has given it to me the last two months has made a big difference I have very little pain with the injection and no pain in my buttocks afterwards..what a blessing. My take on that is it wasn't warmed up to room temp and she is injecting it higher on the butt than the other nurse did. I get a funny taste immediately and my urine has a chemical smell for about a week...that's about it..."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 17, 2020

"Diagnosed with met breast cancer in 2015 started Ibrance in 2018 with Letrozole. No side effects but now the treatment is Falsodex with Ibrance. Been experiencing dry mouth, slight pain in lower back, vision difference and loss of appetite. Not intolerable though. The injections don’t hurt because they warm it up. Hang in there ladies and carry on! Will update results."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• May 5, 2016

"pain at buttock site large lump on injection site 6 months now dizziness, the worst tingling, pins and needles on right foot and other various sites on extremities. comes and goes,also pain on bottom of foot."

• Abiga...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 14, 2017

"Horrible, painful injections, my hips would swell out like a lumpy wing. Was on it for 3 months and it was like miracle grow for my MBC, my liver mets flourished into a garden of tumors. Aromasin for 9 months started the two small liver lesions to multiply like crazy and the Faslodex was worse. All sizes of tumors, the largest being 12 cm. I was on the cusp of liver failure. Also caused sciatica in my left side and have had that for a yr and will never go away. New oncologist put me on Taxol for 7 months. The first 5 months liver enzymes were dropping, tumors shrinking and the last 2 months Taxol stopped working. Eveything reversed. Tried CMF and Xeloda, side effects were severe I refused to do any more treatments. Abraxane now, bad side effects."

• Kathy
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• May 20, 2018

"I’m on faslodex for about a year. I have a lot of side effects — same as everyone else. I was just wondering if anyone is experiencing jaw pain. It just came on suddenly. I went to dentist and they said I have bone loss but no infection to cause pain. Some days the jaw hurts more than others."

• Sarita
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• September 28, 2023

"It’s been three years and seven months since I was diagnosed with MBC with metastasis to my bones and lungs. My cancer markers and tumors have decreased after three months on treatments of Ibrance and Faslodex. I also have an Xgeva injection every 3 mos. This combination treatment does have its side effects. My hair has thinned, and I often have extreme fatigue even though I try to exercise regularly. My urine too smells like burnt oil for about 3 days after injection of Faslodex. I’ve had mouth sores due to dry mouth. Even with the side effects. I’m very happy to be alive enjoying life with my family. I work to mitigate the side effects with Tylenol for pain, Biotene mouthwash and Squiggle toothpaste for mouth sores and I wear cute hats to hide my hair loss when I feel self-conscious. I know we’re all different and we have to make decisions based on what we can live with. Blessings to you all."