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Long-term side effects of Aromasin?

Page last modified on: October 13, 2008
Question from Barbara: What are the long-term side effects of Aromasin regarding chronic arthritis and osteoporosis? Can you speak to the dangers in not taking the dose at the same time daily and/or missing a dose?
Answer —Patricia Ganz, M.D.: I think we have covered some of your question in our earlier comments re missing a dose. It's good to be conscientious about taking your medicines, but missing a single dose will not cause the cancer to come back. As far as the long-term effects of these medications, we are just learning about them and women have not been using them for a very long time for us to know whether there are very serious consequences. We do know that many women will lose bone density on the scans that are done to screen for osteoporosis, and that there are medications to help stabilize the bone density. But we do not have 10- and 15- year data yet to know what will happen to women as they age and whether there will be long-term consequences.

On Wednesday, August 15, 2007, the Ask-the-Expert Online Conference was called Managing Ongoing Medications. Patricia Ganz, M.D. and moderator Lillie Shockney, R.N., B.S., M.A.S. answered your questions about staying on track with breast cancer medications you have to take on a regular basis.

The materials presented in these conferences do not necessarily reflect the views of breastcancer.org. A qualified healthcare professional should be consulted before using any therapeutic product or regimen discussed. All readers should verify all information and data before employing any therapies described here.

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Meet the Experts

Patricia A. Ganz, M.D.Patricia A. Ganz, M.D. is a medical oncologist and a professor in the schools of medicine and public health at UCLA, and is director of the division of cancer prevention and control research at the Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center there.

Lillie Shockney, RN., BS., M.A.S.Lillie Shockney, R.N., B.S., M.A.S. is the administrative director of the Johns Hopkins Avon Foundation Breast Center.

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