It’s common to experience painful joints when taking hormone therapy to treat breast cancer. Especially drugs like letrozole, anastrozole and exemestane. We selected some frequently asked questions about joint pain on the Forum and asked our senior clinical nurse specialist, Rachel.
1) Should I just take painkillers to manage joint pain caused by hormone therapy, or is it something that will improve over time?
Aching or pain in the joints and muscles is often mild and temporary, although for some people it’s more severe and longer-lasting.
You can use mild pain relief like paracetamol or an anti-inflammatory drug such as ibuprofen. Before using anti-inflammatory pain relief, ask your doctor about the correct dose, how long you should use it for and any possible side effects, especially if you have a stomach ulcer or asthma.
Weight-bearing exercises such as walking may also help to strengthen up your muscles and help to protect the joints in your legs.
If the pain doesn’t improve, talk to your doctor as there are other things you can consider. For example, a referral to a doctor who specialises in pain management or switching to a different hormone therapy drug.
2) When I eventually stop taking letrozole, will I regain some flexibility and be able to move more freely?
For many people, joint pain and stiffness will settle over time when you stop taking hormone therapy. But for some people, you might have some stiffness and pain in your joints as a result of the natural aging process.
This is why it’s important, if you are able, to keep your joints as flexible as possible and your muscles strong. You should do a combination of weight-bearing exercises like walking or dancing and muscle-strengthening activities like yoga or lifting light weights.
3) I’m on letrozole and exercise regularly. But if I walk more than a mile or so, my hips hurt and it’s hard to keep going. Am I doing any harm pushing myself further?
Listening to your body is always important. It might help to have a chat with your treatment team about the pain you're experiencing.
While it can be frustrating not to be able to walk as far as you usually do, its good that you're able to keep going. You may find it useful to work up slowly to that next mile and perhaps start some leg strengthening exercises that will help to protect your knees and hips. These videos from an exercise expert may help.
4) I’m taking anastrozole, but it's severely affecting my quality of life. Some mornings I can barely get out of bed and down the stairs due to the pain in my knees. Should I just stop taking it?
It’s really important to carry on taking your hormone therapy as prescribed, as it may affect your outlook. Talk to someone in your treatment team before stopping anastrozole.
Your doctor may suggest having a break from your treatment to see if it settles or may talk to you about switching you to another hormone therapy, to see if your joint pain improves.
5) What are the differences between the 3 aromatase inhibitor drugs (anastrazole, letrozole and exemestane) when it comes to joint pain?
It’s not possible to predict how any of these drugs will affect an individual.
The side effects of all 3 drugs are similar. But some people may get on better with one drug than another.
If you’re finding it hard to cope with side effects from one aromatase inhibitor, your specialist may recommend changing to a different aromatase inhibitor or another hormone therapy drug.
Going through treatment?
Learn about managing joint and muscle pain caused by breast cancer treatment.