I am looking for information on the use of Femara to aid in conception. I know someone had a post a while back about it, but I can't find it. This is my last cycle on clomid and if things don't work out I want to be able to present Femara as an alternative to my endo. I know a study was done and I am looking for information on that study.
It is an antiestrogen, since thats what stimulates breast cancer and helps it grow. It acts on a similar mechanism to clomid by binding to the estrogen receptors and building fsh and lh when taken like clomid does. However, it is out of your system within 2 to 3 days instead of 2 months like clomid, so it doesnt have the nasty effect on the uterine lining or the CM, also on day 10 since it is out of your system your E2 can be tested and estrace can be given to help the lining a few days before you ovulate.
MoeKurm- Do a search under letrozole and you should find it. thats the generic name for it.
Hi ladies,
I am about to start my first round of Femara (letrozole), so I've done a little research on it. I found some great articles and a study all written by a couple of doctors who are using this med with PCOS patients. I have the information in hard copy and if any of you would like me to fax it or mail it to you, I'd be happy to. Some of it you could get from the internet, but the study I had to copy from a journal, and to do that, I had to go the University of Texas Life Sciences Library. Please let me know if you'd like this info. Also, if you search this site for Femara or letrozole, you'll see some good posts on it. I believe there is a woman on the pg board who said she achieved pg with Femara! Good new for us TTC!! Take care.
Steph
__________________ PCOS diagnosed 1989
2550mg of met
Prenatals
Actively TTC since February of 2002
I am the Cyster currently trying Femara (letrozole)...I think I wrote to you a while back under a different heading and suggested that you read the message I wrote under "Trying to Conceive". I just took my first round of letrozole and am currently 5dpo. My doctor told me about the studies that have been done (and I also looked up a lot of info on the internet on my own). This drug has worked VERY VERY well on women with PCOS who haven't had success with clomid....I have tried cycle after cycle of clomid for years with NO RESULTS AT ALL!!!!! NO OVULATION. (We have been trying for 13 years!!!!) So far with femara, I actually DID get a VERY dark positive line on an OPK, which for me has been a miracle of it's own!!!! With femara you also don't have "multiples" when it comes to children like you can with clomid. This drug was MUCH easier on my entire body (I would get REALLY moody with clomid and feel bad most of the time). The only thing I felt on this drug was pain during ovulation, which to me was probably a good thing (ha ha). I wrote about femara, which I called Letrozole on the TTC board, because I want as many cysters as possible to see this info. I'm hoping it helps all of the women who have been TTC like my DH and me. My docotr feels it is going to surpass the use of clomid in women with PCOS because of it's success rate this far!!! This reminds me of a few years ago when metformin (or glucophage) was first being tried for PCOS...NOW look at how many women it has helped!!! It is such a wonderful feeling to be hopeful again because after 13 years, things certainly didn't look good for DH and me in the baby department. I know there are so many others out there in the exact same situation so I REALLY wanted to get this message out...There's GREAT reason to have hope once again!!!!!
I certainly hope this helps you!!! And LOADS of BABY DUST to you and all of our other cysters who are TTC!!!!!!!!
Thank for the information. My husband & I have been trying to conceive for 5 years now and are on our 2nd endo. I really like him, but after about a year of trying he thinks we should give up. I am responding to the clomid and ovulatiing, but no pregnancy. I too have horrible moods with Clomid - I am just a beast to live with! I feel so terrible afterwards since I just about snap everyone's head off. I am in waiting mode right now as we had an IUI on Tuesday. We had 4 follicles (that is what the ultrasound tech said, 3 according to the doc) this month. I am keeping by fingers crossed big time! It was an uncomfortable procedure this month - usually it's a breeze, but I had a lot of cramping and some (very little) spotting. If this doesn't work, I am going to have a consultation with the endo and see if I can convince him to a least try femara for a couple of cycles. He did mention ovarian drilling as an option, but he was not to keen on it because of my size (5'2 250lbs). I wanted the drilling, but if femara is showing promise I would rather that then go into surgery.
How long is the hard copy of the study??? If it is not to long you can fax it to me, I am greatly interested. Please email me at m.e.kurman@att.net and I will give you both my fax number and mailing address. I really appreciate your help!!!
Hi Marilyn...Maybe you won't need ANY more meds if your successful with this cycle!!!! I'll pray for you!! I don't think I've ever mentioned that I had ovarian drilling done in November of 2000, which didn't work for me. One good thing I can say about it is that once I had it done, when I came home from the hospital I decided that I'd better start low-carbing as well. I have stayed on my low-carb diet and have had AF every single month since the procedure was done. My doctor strongly feels it was the combination of having the drilling done and then immediately low-carbing and staying with it that keeps AF coming each month. Before I had the ovarian drilling done, AF only came around about 3 times per year, unless I used provera. So it really didn't help my fertility, but it did help my cycles. That's why I really feel like in the 13 years that we've been TTC, I have tried just about EVERYHTING and after all of that, the ONLY thing that has worked in any way has been the femara (letrozole). If this cycle doesn't turn out the way we're all hoping it will, I really hope your doctor will let you try a few cycle of letrozole.
Femara? 
This is a site I found.... 
