Zoladex (Goserelin), good or not?

Hi everybody,

The oncologist recommends Zoladex (Goserelin) to be injected in her body once monthly on the top of Tamoxifen to shutdown the ovaries. He said It reduces significantly the recurrence because my wife is under  50 years old and ER+.

Considering that she has to go for this injection once a month and the side effects, is it worth it?

Thanks

[PaulMD]

Hi there.

The strategy that your oncologist is taking is called ovarian ablation.  ER positive cancers can get stimulated by the hormone estrogen which is produced by the ovaries.  Ovarian ablation can be accomplished in two ways: with drugs like goserelin, or through surgical removal of the ovaries.  However, if the person is already in menopause, goserelin will not be useful.  For pre-menopausal patients with ER positive tumors, ovarian ablation with Goserelin has proven to decrease the chance of the cancer recurrence.  The side effects are manageable once reported to your doctor.

Regards and God bless.