Friday, January 30, 2009
According to Dr. Susan Ott, Professor of the University of Washington Bone Physiology Course, "Bisphosphonates are NOT APPROVED for prevention of osteoporosis in premenopausal women." (Bisphosphonates include drugs like Fosamax, Boniva, and Actonel). Okay I understand that statement, but what about t...
I had taken Forteo injections for the past 22 months with no problems. Now my dex scan shows that I had improved my osteo by 20% in my spine, and 14% in my hips. Both my GYN and family doctor have suggested that I do Reclasp as I can not take any of the oral medications. I am scared to death of the complications that may occur with reclasp and almost of of my mind over it. I think I would rather do nothing at this point....I am 70 years old, I had hyperthyroid which they think caused the osteo in the first place and take daily medication after having the idiodine done to lower my thyroid.
Please advise me what I can do.
Mary S
Hi Mary: First off let me congratulate you on your fantastic bone density improvements on Forteo, that's great news!!
Has your Dr. discussed what would happen if you didn't take anything post Forteo? The problem with this is we need to take something to maintain the gains we made on Forteo. If you don't want to take Reclast, has your Dr. mentioned any other options?
I finished Forteo and did really well, but I didn't want to take any of the bisphosphonates.
I'm now on Evista, and I won't know how well it's working to maintain my gains until my next dxa. My bone marker tests show it's working, but I won't know my actual bmd score until next month. Evista isn't considered a first line of defense for osteoporosis, so needless to say my Dr. would be happier if I were taking a bisphosphonate like Reclast, but I chose not to.
You'll have to decide what to do, but I would be worried about losing the gains you made if you don't take anything.
I'm looking into Denosumab, which *I hope* will be approved by the FDA in Oct., but until then will continue on Evista. The other problem is we don't know for sure if Denosumab will be approved so I'll have to wait and see.
Good luck finding something to take...
Do you have any problems with the Evista, how often do you take it. I tried Fosamax and thought that I was having a heart attack....then I tried another, can't remember right now what it was and it gave me such pains in the legs I couldn't stand. I never had a problem with Foreto, but do not want to go on to the Reclasp....that scares me to no end. My GYN suggested that I go back on Foreto for another year, but family doc say no. I just don't know which way to go.
Thank you for your support and comments.
Mary
Hi Mary: I haven't had any trouble with Evista, and you take one a day-anytime of day. If you have any troubles with blood clots you may not be able to take it. They also tell you that if you plan on being in bed for prolonged periods or planning to fly to stop the Evista several days before either of those two things because of the blood clotting issue. If you have any heart issues, these should be mentioned to the Dr. if you consider Evista. I have several heart problems, but I don't have any artery problems or blood clotting issues so I take it with my problems.
Like I mentioned I hope to take Denosumab, if it is approved, and Evista was only an interim drug decision until I can find something else that stronger.
If you haven't read about Denosumab here's a link on it from the New England Journal of Med. Denosumab is not a bisphosphonate like Fosamax, Actonel, Boniva, or Reclast. It's a monoclonal antibody, so those with autoimmune problems may not be able to take it. You can look up Evista in the search box above to the right of the purple Ask rectangle and click *go*.
Good luck...
Hi Mary: I forgot to mention something. Does your family doc say why he doesn't want you to do another 1-2 year course on Forteo? I was just curious because I've heard of other people doing this, even though they are NO studies on what the effects would be if you did more than the original 2 year course.
The people I'm aware of that are considering it, lost all their gains after finishing Forteo and now are back to their originally low t-scores from years ago. Their argument was the same and refused to take a bisphosphonate, so some did nothing and lost all the gains.
I was just curious if the Dr who recommended the additional course of Forteo had any info on this from his patients or clinical trials that he knows of and how they did.
Good luck...