Arimidex contains anastrozole as an active drug. Arimidex is an aromatase inhibitor and it belongs to the drug class called aromatase inhibitors. Anastrozole Arimidex is also accessible as an Arimidex generic drug.
A generic medicine is an exact copy of the active drug available under a brand name medicine. Arimidex generic is considered to be as effective and safe as the original drug. Generic medicines cost less than brand-name drugs.
What is Arimidex?
Arimidex medication is a prescription drug used to treat breast cancer in postmenopausal women. Often Arimidex anastrozole is prescribed for women whose cancer progresses even after using Tamoxifen.
Arimidex medication lowers estrogen levels in women after menopause which slows down the growth of certain kinds of breast tumors. These breast tumors need high levels of estrogen to grow and spread in the body.
Anastrozole is a hormone therapy drug prescribed to treat breast cancer in women who have completed menopause. it can also be used in premenopausal women with ovarian suppression as a treatment to avert ovaries working.
Anastrozole Arimidex is not approved for children and women who have not gone through menopause.
Arimidex to Treat Breast Cancer
Arimidex medication is commonly prescribed to women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer. It is used in females only who have gone through menopause.
Breast cancer medication Arimidex is used to treat certain types of:
HR+ or Hormone Receptor-Positive early-stage breast cancer as a post-surgery (adjuvant) treatment.
HR+ or HR unknown breast cancer (metastatic breast cancer) that has spread to other parts of the body as the first line treatment.
For advanced breast cancer that has deteriorated after taking Tamoxifen (Soltamox, Nolvadex).
Usually, Anastrozole is given post-surgery to lessen the risk of spreading cancer cells and breast cancer coming back.
When to start Aridimex? Sometimes Anastrozole Arimidex is used to treat cancer if women can not undergo surgery or to shrink the cancer cells before surgery if women can not undergo chemotherapy. You can talk with your doctor or pharmacist regarding your treatment and medications.
How Does Arimidex Work?
After menopause in women, the hormone estrogen is not produced in the ovaries. However, it is largely produced in tissues including fat, liver, muscle, and breast cells. When the hormone estrogen is produced in these tissues, it binds to estrogen receptors on the breast cells allowing the growth and proliferation of cancer cells.
Aromatase enzyme is found in fat, liver, muscle, and breast cells of postmenopausal women and alters the androgens into the hormone estrogen. Certain breast cancer tumors mature in the presence of the hormone estrogen.
Aromatase inhibitors like Arimidex aromatase work against advanced or early breast cancer by blocking the aromatase enzyme and diminishing estrogen production in these tissues. Arimidex breast cancer medicine lowers cancer-causing levels of estrogen in the body.
How long does breast cancer medicine Arimidex take to work?
Arimidex starts working against your breast cancer right after you take your first dose. You may not realize the effect of Arimidex in the first few days, however, your doctor will screen your condition throughout the treatment to determine how well Arimidex breast cancer medicine is working for you.
Estrogen stimulates the Hormone Receptor Positive breast cancer cells. Breast cancer medication Arimidex does not against the Hormone Receptor Negative breast cancer.
Talk With Your Doctor Before Taking ArimidexArimidex to Prevent Breast Cancer Recurrence
Breast cancer causes rapid and out-of-control growth of your breast cells. This quick growth can allow a tumor to develop in your breast. The cancer cells may also proliferate from the breast area to other areas of the body.
Once you are diagnosed with breast cancer, your healthcare provider may ask you to get tested in order to know if it is Hormone Receptor Positive. It means the cancer is influenced by hormones like estrogen.
After your doctor determines the type of breast cancer, they decide on a suitable initial treatment that may include surgery with or without radiation and chemotherapy. Because HR+ breast cancer is affected by hormones so your doctor also needs to consider a hormonal treatment such as Arimidex.
For this type of breast cancer, Arimidex estrogen blocker treatment works by reducing estrogen levels in the body which leads to reduced growth of cancer cells. Arimidex hormonal therapy help reduce the chances of recurrence of breast cancer.
Talk With Your Doctor Before Taking Arimidex
Do not take Arimidex medication if you have not completed menopause, you are allergic to Anastrozole. Arimidex is not FDA-approved for use in children or men. Do not take Anastrozole Arimidex in combination with Tamoxifen.
Tell your healthcare provider if you have or had heart problems, blood clots high cholesterol, osteoporosis, low bone mineral density, Ischemic heart disease or coronary artery disease.
Before you begin with Arimidex medication talk with your doctor regarding your medical history including other medications you are taking, and any other health conditions you have or had.
In some cases, your doctor may need to adjust Arimidex dosage accordingly or it may not be a suitable treatment for your depending on your medical history.
Arimidex Dosage
Usually, the Arimidex dosage is Arimidex 1mg tablet needs to be taken once a day. For women with advanced HR+ breast cancer, Arimidex 1 mg tablet needs to be taken until tumor progression. Arimidex can be taken with or without food.
Is liquid Arimidex avialble? No, Arimidex is not available in liquid form, it only comes in form of tablets.
Missed Dose
If you missed taking your Arimidex dose, take it immediately as you remember. If you come to know about the missed dose when it is almost time for your next dose, skip the missed dose and continue with your normal dosing schedule.
Never take two doses together to compensate for a missed Arimidex dose. If you missed taking a dose of Arimidex and you are not sure about your next dose talk to your doctor for advice.
Depending on your body’s response to the treatment your healthcare provider may recommend Arimidex breast cancer therapy for the long term.
What To Expect During Breast Cancer Treatment with Arimidex
You must be prescribed to take one Arimidex pill every day with or without food. Make sure you stick to the directions mentioned on your prescription label. Carefully follow the Arimidex dosing schedule recommended by your doctor.
Mostly, post-menopausal women diagnosed with early-stage HR+ breast cancer are prescribed to take Arimidex breast cancer medicine for 5 years post-surgery to diminish the risk of recurrence.
In case, your healthcare professional found breast cancer in lymph nodes, called node-positive disease, you need to take Arimidex or other aromatase inhibitors for another 5 years. That means a complete hormonal therapy treatment of 10 years or extended adjuvant hormonal therapy.
Women diagnosed with advanced-stage HR+ breast cancer may be prescribed to continuously take Arimidex medication as long as they get benefits from this medicine.
Where To Buy Arimidex
Like other prescription drugs, Arimidex is a prescription-only medication, you can buy Arimidex only if you have a prescription from a licensed doctor. Arimidex without prescription is not accessible so the first step to buying Arimidex is to consult a healthcare professional.
Arimidex without prescription? If you do not have a prescription, you can buy Arimidex online. Online pharmacies connect you with their doctors whom you can consult and get your prescription.
During the consultation process, if the doctor finds you suitable for using Arimidex, they provide you with the prescription and once the online pharmacy gets a prescription they give doorstep delivery of Arimidex.
Arimidex cost may vary depending on the generic or brand name drug. Generic drug forms are less expensive than brand-name versions. The approximate Arimidex cost for 3o tablets (1 mg) is around $247.26. The cost of Anastrozole 1 mg tablet (6 tablets) is around $19 depending on the pharmacy you are buying from.
Arimidex Interactions
Taking medicine with certain foods, vaccines, ingredients, herbal supplements, birth control pills, and other medications may influence how it works. This influence is referred to as interaction. Arimidex may interact with several other drugs.
Arimidex estrogen blocker medicine can interact with other medicines that contain estrogen hormones. Arimidex lowers estrogen levels in postmenopausal women, taking drugs that rise estrogen levels in your body can diminish the efficiency of Arimidex. Because of this risk, your doctor may advise you to avoid estrogen creams or hormone replacement therapy.
Some studies show that taking Arimidex along with Tamoxifen is not as effective as taking Tamoxifen alone. Taking both of these drugs in combination can increase the risk of side effects. So, you should not take Arimidex and Tamoxifen together.
This section may not contain all Arimidex medication interactions. Ask your doctor or pharmacist to know more details about drug interactions that can occur with the use of Arimidex.
Arimidex Vs. Tamoxifen
When it comes to Tamoxifen vs Arimidex, a large study revealed that Arimidex is more effective than Tamoxifen to treat early-stage HR+ breast cancer. In this study, they did a comparison between women diagnosed with early HR+ breast cancer who took Arimidex for 5 years and who took Tamoxifen for 5 years.
The result was, in compassion to women who took Tamoxifen, women who took Arimidex had a 17 % reduced risk of cancer recurrence, cancer spreading to other body parts, developing cancer in their unaffected breast, and death due to any reason.
Advanced breast cancer studies revealed that Arimidex treatment was either similarly effective or more effective than Tamoxifen treatment.
In the first advanced breast cancer study, Arimidex was more effective as a first treatment to slow down the growth and spread of cancer than Tamoxifen. 88% of women involved in this study had HR+ breast cancer.
In the second advanced breast cancer study 45% of women involved had HR + breast cancer. The study found Arimidex to be equally effective as Tamoxifen in lessoning the worsening of breast cancer. However, hormone receptor status was not known for 54% of women involved in the study.
Two studies observed women with advanced breast cancer that spread after Tamoxifen treatment. The second lie treatment with Arimidex medication was equally effective as with other hormone therapy drugs known as Megestrol.
Clomid Vs Arimidex
Clomid (Clomiphene Citrate) and Arimidex (Anastrozole) are anti-estrogens. Arimidex is an aromatase inhibitor commonly used to treat breast cancer in postmenopausal women. Arimidex medication is often prescribed to women whose breast cancer spread or grows even after Tamoxifen treatment.
Clomid is an ovulatory stimulant commonly used to treat polycystic ovary syndrome and ovulatory dysfunction. It is prescribed for women who fail to get pregnant due to other reasons and desire to get pregnant. Clomid use followed by other instructions make pregnancy likely to occur.
Arimidex Vs Femara
Arimidex (Anastrozole) and Femara (Letrozole) are aromatase inhibitors and anti-cancer medications used to treat breast cancer in postmenopausal women. Both of these drugs are accessible in generic forms.
Often Arimidex is given to women whose breast cancer has advanced even after using Tamoxifen. While Femara is more commonly prescribed to women who have been taking Tamoxifen for 5 years.
Femara vs Arimidex Side Effects
Possible side effects of Arimidex include nausea, stomach upset, vomiting, headache, constipation, flushing, confusion, and memory issues. On the other hand, possible side effects of Femara are hot flashes, hair loss, warmth in the face or chest, joint or muscle pain, tiredness, nausea, unusual sweating, and dizziness.
Aromasin Vs Arimidex
Arimidex and Aromasin both are aromatase inhibitors which means both medications block the action of the aromatase enzyme. Both are FDA approved for the treatment of breast cancer. However, Aromasin contains exemestane and Arimidex contains anastrozole.
A study demonstrated that Aromasin and Arimidex both are similarly effective at reducing the risk of breast cancer recurrence in postmenopausal women diagnosed with early-stage HR+ breast cancer.
Arimidex and Weight Gain
Some women using Arimidex treatment may gain body weight during treatment. In a clinical study performed with women diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer, 9% of women who were taking Arimidex medication had weight gain. Similarly, 9% of women who were taking Tamoxifen for 5 years also had weight gain.
Arimidex For Men
Arimidex is approved only for post-menopausal females because it had been studied in females only. However, sometimes, doctors may prescribe Arimidex to males for off-label use to treat breast cancer that is driven by estrogen.
A doctor may also prescribe Arimidex for certain males who are undergoing Testosterone Replacement Therapy. This therapy can increase estrogen levels in the body and your doctor may prescribe Arimidex medicine in order to lower the levels of estrogen.
Arimidex bodybuilding
Currently, Arimidex is not approved to use for bodybuilding purposes. It is only approved to use for in the treatment of certain types of breast cancer. Sometimes Arimidex is taken to decrease estrogen levels raised due to the use of the anabolic steroid. Some people might use Arimidex to reduce the side effects (such as gynecomastia or male breast enlargement) caused by high estrogen levels in the body.
Using Arimidex for bodybuilding purposes or without consulting your doctor can be harmful. It may cause serious problems. Avoid using Arimidex or other drugs without a doctor’s prescription.
Is Arimidex A Chemo Drug?
Arimidex is an anti-cancer medication so there are many questions regarding the drug and Arimidex treatment such as is Arimidex chemo? Is Arimidex chemotherapy? Is Arimidex a steroid? and many more.
Arimidex is an estrogen blocker as it reduces the estrogen levels in your body in order to treat HR+ breast cancer in postmenopausal women only. Arimidex is not a steroid drug, chemo drug, or chemotherapy.
What are the side effects of Arimidex?
Like many other drugs, Anastrozole Arimidex side effects are possible to occur that may be mild or serious. Mild side effects Arimidex may cause usually do not need medical attention and get better within a few days. Serious Arimidex side effects are rare and may need medical attention.
Side effects of any medicine depend on your age, other health issues, and other medications you are taking. Your doctor or pharmacist suggests how you can reduce the possible side effects of Arimidex.
Arimidex side effects in women include weakness, rash, sore throat, nausea, vomiting, stomach pain, hot flashes, joint or bone pain, back pain, headache, mild allergic reaction, high blood pressure, hair loss, and water retention.
Serious Arimidex side effects in women which are rarely reported include heart disease, broken bones, osteoporosis, skin reactions, severe allergic reaction, worsening chest pain, trouble breathing, and liver problems.