Tamoxifen & Prozac to Tamoxifen & Celexa?

[katarina777]

I have heard many bc patients mention that they were switched from Prozac to Celexa when they were taking Prozac and started on Tamoxifen. This seems to be almost a standard switch, as supposedly Celexa interferes a lot less with getting he full benefits of Tamoxifen

So, my oncologist for that reason also switched me to Celexa about a month ago, and although I told him I would do so immediately then, I did not, as I knew I had an upcoming consultation with a psychiatrist, and I did not feel comfortable switching under the supervision of my oncologist but rather wanted  the psychiatrists approval first and his guidance.

So today I had my appointment with the psychiatrist and I was really impressed with his knowledge about all of this.

He said, NO, and that Celexa also interferes a lot, and since I was seeing him for this switch, we should do this right.

He told me that he would switch me an antidepressant that was also mainly a serotonin uptake inhibitor, although unlike Prozac, in higher doses it also worked on norepinephrine, but generally had very few if hardly any side effects. The drug is Remeron, and it has absolutely no issues with Tamoxifen when Celexa did a lot.

It is also not a good idea at all to do what my oncologist told me to do and just switch from one to the other, and this is true for Celexa or Remeron, from one day to the next but he told me to go down to half the dose of Prozac for three days and then no Prozac for three days and then to half the dose of Remeron for a few days and then to the full dose.

Just wanted to share this for whatever it's worth. kat

[ncmichigan]

Thank you SO much for sharing this information. I was on low dose estrogen/
testosterone following my hysterectomy in 2003. My PCP precscribed Celexa about 3 years ago for menopause symptoms: mostly mood swings, some depression and low sex drive. I was doing really well on this combination. I was just diagnosed in October with LCIS and had to stop the hormones. I'm having hot flashes and the other symptoms are really effecting me more. My oncologist will probably start me on tamoxifen in February and I will definitely discuss this with him. I'm still learning about this condition and I am so grateful for the information and help I get from the wonderful women on this forum!

[zouzi]

Hi Kat,
I think that this information you have shared with us,is certainly very important for so many women, so that they can know which antidepressant medication can interfere with Tamoxifen.It was very wise of you to see your psychiatrist before taking Celexa.Of course we all have to ask our doctors opinion before switching to any other medication that was prescribed.Thanks for the advice and I really hope that you are doing well.

Sue♥