does estagen increase the size of an's?

[lmurray69]

I am on tamoxifen it is a drug that stops estragen in your body, I am on my 4th year and you can only take it for 5 yrs..

[jamie]

There is no hard evidence that estrogen increases the size of schwannomas (AN), although it does in meningiomas, studies have shown though that progesterone may increase the size of an AN, but there's no real concensus on that either, from what I understand....

[lmurray69]

Thanks for the reply..I just hate this thing in my head that i cant do anything about..

[jamie]

Thanks for the reply..I just hate this thing in my head that i cant do anything about..

Well, it's a double edged sword in my opinion. The thing is just an over abundance of your own schwann cells, not an alien, lol. At least you know it's there so it can be monitored, there are many walking around out there who have as little idea that they have something like this as we did, and probably won't know til it's too large to have a choice of treatments. I really don't think about it much when I'm off this site, but then technically I don't have an AN and have no nerve problems at all. Just know all kinds of people have all kinds of benign growths in their bodies and don't even know it, and we're lucky enough to live in a time where medicine is advancing like wildfire. Soon, I believe there will probably be a non-invasive "nano" technology that will eliminate tumors without opening the patient up.   

[DeniseSmith]

I wasn't on any prescription medicine prior to the "discovery" of my tumor, and it was huge.

[Sanddollar]

I am not on any kind of estrogen, however, I do believe that hormones have some role to play with AN's.  Just after I was diagnosed last November, and right before my period the next month, I had a sudden drop in hearing and a pulsing on the side of my head diagonally opposite the tumor. When I went back to the doctor, they thought perhaps the tumor had swollen for some reason.  I didn't have any reason to connect this with my period then, but the next month I had eye twitches on the AN side.   I had surgery in January and here I am - premenstrual and here come the eye twitches.  Coincidence?  Maybe.... I'll just have to keep monitoring this...  others should too, so they will know when to stay clear of me!   

[BP Wench]

I know before surgery I never had PMS but after surgery you can't mistake it....you'll see everyone running for their lives around here  lol

[Gennysmom]

Interesting...I've only known about my AN for 3 1/2 weeks...but I will be paying attention to this now.  I am on estrogen/progesterone and have been for eons. 

[***Leigh***]

If it does, does that mean pregnancy, with the overdoses of hormones swimming around,  is likely to increase the sixe of an AN too?

[ppearl214]

having a "funky" female system, I haven't noticed any fluxuations in symptoms with the knowledge/diagnosis of my AN last year....mood swings still occur (trust me, CB disappears that week... he's learned!) but will see if I spot any changes in symptoms during PMS or "time o' month" week.

[Battyp]

I've only had pms symptoms since my surgery...hmmm..wonder if there is a connection or just my age?  I've had enough test in the last two days they better figure it out!

[lmurray69]

[=thanks to all of you . I am glad that there is a place that i can go and get answers..The estragen, sure makes us wonder doesnt it...But ,I have to tell you the estragen is out of my body and mine is growing too..got measured today it up to a 1.4 cm..started out a 5mm a year ago ,I had radiation and i guess it itsnt working ..found a surgeon in kc that i go see next week to try and get thi sthing out
I

[ppearl214]

lmurray,

I was thinking about you and this thread last night while at the hair salon... hoping one of you can help here.

Picked up an issue of either Newsweek or Time Magazine, March 20th issue. There was an article about tumors and estrogen and some tumors that, when biopsied and further eval'd under microscope, found a layer or such of estrogen around the tumor!

Oh, I know! It was either magazine that did the article on Dana Reeves and her lung cancer. At the end of the article, it spoke of certain growth that do seem to have estrogen on them. Thus, the rising rate of lung cancer in women, even, like Dana Reeves, if they didn't/don't smoke!

If someone has either magazine, can you please double check?  It would be rather enlightening if AN's ever fell under this category as well!