Aromasin Exemestane Hormonal Therapy & Insomnia

 

As a prescription drug, Aromasin (Exemestane) has proved its effectiveness in treating breast cancer of postmenopausal women. However, the drug is not immune from side effects. This is no big deal and occurs with any medication. Among several side effects of Aromasin, insomnia is the most common one.

 

Contradictory findings of various clinical trials make it difficult to conclude whether insomnia occurs due to the medication, other factors, or both. In one clinical study, 12.4 percent of patients taking Aromasin (Exemestane) reported insomnia as a side effect. Another study showed a bit higher percentage (13.7 percent) of patients experiencing this particular side effect. But, the results of a third study put a question mark on the findings of the preceding studies. In this study, 15.1 percent of people not taking Aromasin reported insomnia, creating doubts that if Aromasin is actually reducing the risk of insomnia.

 

Whether a patient has insomnia problem can be found out from one or more symptoms such as difficulty sleeping, awakening many times during the night and facing difficulty returning to sleep, getting up quite early in the morning, and lack of freshness after sleep.

 

All the Aromasin studies on breast cancer have not involved a group of patients taking a placebo (sugar pill) due to the unethical nature of not treating breast cancer. In most non-cancer studies, participants are divided into two groups: one that actually taking the medication on study and the other simply taking a placebo pill that won’t treat the condition and offers no adverse effects. So, you can easily conclude that the side effects occurring in the placebo group are because of the condition or factors other than the medication. It also makes the comparison between two groups easier. The findings can help the researchers in evaluating the impact of the medicine on a specific problem. But, the absence of a placebo pill in Aromasin (Exemestane) studies makes the fact inconclusive whether insomnia is due to Aromasin, other factors, or a blend of both.

 

If you face difficulty sleeping while taking Aromasin, there are certain tips that you can follow for better sleep. These include:

 

  • Trying to maintain a habitual sleep-wake cycle that means you should go to bed and get up in the morning at the same time all days.
  • Keeping away from alcohol, nicotine, and caffeine in 4-6 hours before going to bed.
  • Avoiding physical exercise inside 2 hours of bedtime. The best time to do exercise is 5 to 6 hours before sleep. It may help you to achieve a more sound sleep.
  • Not eating heavy meals within 2 hours of bedtime.
  • Steering clear of a nap late in the afternoon.
  • Taking sleep in a calm, dark room at a comfy temperature.
  • Indulging yourself in a quiet activity someplace if you can’t fall asleep within 20 minutes and going back to bed when you feel sleepy-eyed.
  • Getting relaxed with a soft bath, reading, or soft music in the 30 minutes before bedtime.