Just wanted to tell anyone who might be in this position that if you go in to the menopause before the age of 45, you are eligible for a bone density scan on the NHS.
I found this out and asked my oncologist about getting a Dexa scan to check out my bone density, since I had alot of chemo which put me into menopause and have a family history of osteoporosis.
I had mine today. It didn’t take very long and was like an x-ray (no needles, unlike alot of the other scans I have had). From what I could see of the screen I think my spine looked pretty good, nice and white, but I my upper leg looked rather grey.
Anyway, I get my answer in three weeks and I suspect I will end up on yet more drugs. The frustrating thing is that I had a er-,pr- cancer, so there is no cancer survival benefit at all for me having my hormones cut off. Then again, it is better to know about this problem than to break my hip unexpectedly.
ooooooo thanks for that…will stamp my feet for another one when i go see the oncologist again in december or january whenever he sent out my checkup letter for.
I got chucked into the menopause head first after having to have a hysterectomy a few weeks ago, im only just 31 so thats good to know that i can be able to keep an eye on my bone density
Hi - I had my ovaries out at 35 and have had one bone density scan and will have one apparantly every 2 years to check on things. My onc has also prescribed a drug Fosomax I take once a week to build up my bones.
S x
Well, my hip bones had less bone mineral density than my spine, but that’s the way is supposed to be, so I was within the average range on my hip bone mineral density, but slightly low in my lumbar region. Bone density is only an issue for younger women if chemo puts them into the menopause, but after chemopause it is the lumbar region that tends to develop problems and the loss of bone mineral density can be quite severe. So I am what they call osteopaenic, but not enough to get medication, which is partly a relief, although I know that I will undoubtedly have to have them in the future. Why, oh why, do our treatments have to be so crap?
I ran across an article that suggested that doing aerobic exercise during the chemo treatment period can reduce bone density loss to almost nothing. I did very badly on FEC and am not sure that I could have managed four sessions of aerobic activity a week, since I was constantly in and out of hospital, but might have been able to do this during taxotere (yes, I am the only person in the world who found taxotere easier than FEC). Still, aerobic exercise might be an idea for those of you who can manage it.