How does chemotherapy affect the menstrual cycle?
How Does Chemotherapy Influence the Onset of Menopause? During chemotherapy, women may have irregular menstrual cycles or amenorrhea (disappearance of menstrual periods). Some medications used in chemotherapy may also cause damage to the ovaries, resulting in menopausal symptoms or menopause.
How long after chemo will my period return?
Early menopause brought on by chemotherapy may be temporary. In other words, your menstrual periods may stop and then start again after chemotherapy is over. It can take a few months or as long as a year or more for your periods to return.
Can chemo put you in menopause?
Chemotherapy can cause temporary menopause
“Chemotherapy basically puts the ovaries to sleep,” Karuturi says. The ovaries stop processing the eggs, the woman stops having a period and she goes into temporary menopause. In most cases, menstruation returns naturally eight months to two years after chemotherapy stops.
Do periods stop with breast cancer?
A long or irregular menstrual cycle means you have fewer periods and can lower the risk of breast cancer in younger women. Early breast cancer may not affect your periods. Still, chemotherapy treatment may affect the regularity of your periods, your flow, or in some cases, stop periods.
Does chemo make you age faster?
Chemotherapy, radiation therapy and other cancer treatments cause aging at a genetic and cellular level, prompting DNA to start unraveling and cells to die off sooner than normal. Bone marrow transplant recipients are eight times more likely to become frail than their healthy siblings.
Do the side effects of chemo get worse with each treatment?
The effects of chemo are cumulative. They get worse with each cycle. My doctors warned me: Each infusion will get harder. Each cycle, expect to feel weaker.
What is chemo belly?
Bloating can also be caused by slowed movement of food through the G.I. (gastrointestinal tract or digestive tract) tract due to gastric surgery, chemotherapy (also called chemo belly), radiation therapy or medications. Whatever the cause, the discomfort is universally not welcome. It’s a Catch 22.
At what age is menopause?
Menopause is the time that marks the end of your menstrual cycles. It’s diagnosed after you’ve gone 12 months without a menstrual period. Menopause can happen in your 40s or 50s, but the average age is 51 in the United States. Menopause is a natural biological process.
How can I lose weight during menopause and chemo?
Weight-Loss Tips
- Keep a food log. You may be eating more than you think.
- Pay attention to what you drink. Sodas and sugary coffee drinks often contain a lot of calories.
- Cut back on butter and oil. …
- Make meat secondary. …
- Consider strength-building exercises if you have lost muscle or gained fat tissue.
Does Chemo give you hot flashes?
Chemotherapy-induced medical menopause can cause hot flashes, as can hormonal therapies such as tamoxifen. Overall, the severity of hot flashes can vary from mild to moderate to severe.