Your post has been moved to the Ask the Nurses site so we can help with your query.
People do wonder whether they can reduce the amount of time they take tamoxifen, sometimes for a number of reasons- either they would like to get pregnant and don't want to or can't wait 5 years, or that they are having such bad side effects, that they don't feel they can carry on.
It's always good to have a discussion about this with your specialist - they are used to answering queries like this and every person may have a different reply depending on their age, stage and grade of their cancer and their own circumstances. Not taking tamoxifen for the recommended time advised by your specialist may though increase the risk of the breast cancer coming back, so it's important that you have a frank discussion with the specialist.
Tamoxifen used to be prescribed for 2 years a number of years ago , but continuous research and studies are always ongoing and after many years of looking at new research, it was found that 5 years on tamoxifen was giving better results in remaining cancer free than 2 years. In fact, for certain people , 10 years is also now being suggested following latest research.
So do have the conversation first , being very upfront with your reasons for wanting to stop . It is possible to change to other tablets if you are post menopausal and if you are premenopausal, if you are prepared to go onto injections which will switch off your ovaries while taking the tablets , you can also try other tablets.
I hope you're able to have a chat with someone soon - while you are waiting, please do give us a call if you would like to talk things through with one of the nurses here on the helpline - the number to call is Freephone 0808 800 4040 and the lines are open from 9am till 5pm Monday to Friday.
