Zometa infusion

I was diagnosed with bilateral bc negative node involvement grade 2 with 1
tumor of 2.5cm in size on the left breast and 4 other small tumours on the
right side. I had a bilateral mastectomy with chemotherapy of FEC and
taxotere over a period of 4 months. I finished my treatment August 06.
Since then I really didnt want to take hormone therapy (but took alternative
treatments which were stretching the budget) so I then reluctantly decided
to take Arimidex and also Zometa (for the bones). Unfortunately during the
last week I developed an abscess in my back molar and subsequently it is no
longer alive. The only way out of this predicament is to have the tooth
either extracted or root canal which is very costly. Because of this drug,
extraction is out of the question due to the side effects of "osteocronosis
of the Jaw" which is rare but does happen. Has anyone out there had this
drug and how long does it stay in the system for before you can have an
extraction? By the way, my dentist of 9 years refused to do the job as she
was too worried of the consequences.
Mary E.

"Mary E." <happy@home.com> wrote in message
news:fAy%h.34732$M.24924@news-server.bigpond.net.au...
>I was diagnosed with bilateral bc negative node involvement grade 2 with 1
>tumor of 2.5cm in size on the left breast and 4 other small tumours on the
>right side. I had a bilateral mastectomy with chemotherapy of FEC and
>taxotere over a period of 4 months. I finished my treatment August 06.
>Since then I really didnt want to take hormone therapy (but took
>alternative treatments which were stretching the budget) so I then
>reluctantly decided to take Arimidex and also Zometa (for the bones).
>Unfortunately during the last week I developed an abscess in my back molar
>and subsequently it is no longer alive. The only way out of this
>predicament is to have the tooth either extracted or root canal which is
>very costly. Because of this drug, extraction is out of the question due
>to the side effects of "osteocronosis of the Jaw" which is rare but does
>happen. Has anyone out there had this drug and how long does it stay in
>the system for before you can have an extraction? By the way, my dentist
>of 9 years refused to do the job as she was too worried of the
>consequences.
> Mary E.

I can't answer your question but it's very worrying that medical
professionals are more and more reluctant to do even minor surgery because
there is a tiny risk. Here in England it's happening too but many of us feel
that it's because of an eagerness for litigation by some patients,
especially those in USA. We hear about awards of millions of dollars for a
minor damage. Why can't patients simply accept that nobody's perfect, that
accidents WILL happen and that doctors and surgeons aren't either god or
magicians?

The love of money ... :-(

Currently I'm undergoing root canal treatment which is taking weeks and it
has a poor prognosis (I said that it could see me out!) but I use that tooth
which is the last in that jaw and sort of matches the only one opposing it.
When I began the treatment I was taking Arimidex (but only for four months
and not for bc) and it didn't ring any bells with the dentist - thank
goodness.

But every time I go I have to say that I have a very slight systolic murmur.
They refuse to do dentistry here if you have a murmur so I had to have an
expensive (for the NHS) ultra-sound examination to show that my valves were
all working well and a letter from that hospital to the dentist to certify
it. It was years ago, I've argued ever since that that letter should be
sufficient and that I wasn't prepared to have another test, the letter
should be in my file.The murmur was discovered nearly forty years ago by an
enthusiastic doctor, it had never been detected before. It has probably been
there for more than sixty years, since I had a fever when I was five. but
they have to cover themselves ...

None of this helps you, I'm sorry. I hope you have a satisfactory outcome of
your dilemma.

Mary

Mary E. wrote:
> I was diagnosed with bilateral bc negative node involvement grade 2 with 1
> tumor of 2.5cm in size on the left breast and 4 other small tumours on the
> right side. I had a bilateral mastectomy with chemotherapy of FEC and
> taxotere over a period of 4 months. I finished my treatment August 06.
> Since then I really didnt want to take hormone therapy (but took alternative
> treatments which were stretching the budget) so I then reluctantly decided
> to take Arimidex and also Zometa (for the bones). Unfortunately during the
> last week I developed an abscess in my back molar and subsequently it is no
> longer alive. The only way out of this predicament is to have the tooth
> either extracted or root canal which is very costly. Because of this drug,
> extraction is out of the question due to the side effects of "osteocronosis
> of the Jaw" which is rare but does happen. Has anyone out there had this
> drug and how long does it stay in the system for before you can have an
> extraction? By the way, my dentist of 9 years refused to do the job as she
> was too worried of the consequences.
> Mary E.
>
>
As far as dental surgery is concerned, the Novartis prescribing sheet
specifically says there is "no data" on whether discontinuing Zometa
reduces the (fairly small) risk of jaw necrosis. I imagine that no-one
who discontinued it has actually suffered necrosis, or if they did, they
did not connect it with the Zometa and report it. I think there have
only been about 100 reported cases altogether.

This is one of those "known unknowns" of Rumsfeld fame.

There are suggestions that the effect might be expected to persist
indefinitely. Others suggest that stopping for a few months might
reduce the risk. The actual risk for bisphosphonate patients having
extractions is put at around 0.1-0.4% (see reference below). There is
also a suggestion that the risk develops over the first four years or so
of usage, so as you have only recently started treatment it might be
best to get on with it, perhaps suspending treatment, before levels in
your bones have built up.

You might want to point your dentist at the following paper from the
American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons:

http://www.aaoms.org/docs/position_p...eonecrosis.pdf



Tim Jackson

>Has anyone out there had this drug and how
> long does it stay in the system for before you
> can have an extraction?
>Mary

Mary, I am on Arimidex and my former Oncologist gave me an infusion of
Zometa. I had such a horrible reaction (thank goodness!) to the Zometa
that I thought I would have to be hospitalized. So...I refused to take
it again and he agreed with my decision.

Your question about how long it stays in your system was one that
greatly concerned me. I spoke to a dentist who did not know so I wrote
to the manufacturers of Zometa and asked them this question. Not only
for myself but for all the other women out there who I knew probably
would want to know. That was months ago and to date they have still not
replied to my email. I think it may be because they do not know! We
have a right to know the answer to this question! How can they put out
such a drug on the market and not be able to tell us how long it can
last in our systems when it has such a horrendous side effect.

As for the fact that there are some who might say it "doesn't happen to
everyone" I say that does not lessen my fear of the consequences. I was
once told by a doctor that the chances of someone in my family getting a
certain chronic illness was "one in a million". Well, guess what? They
were wrong! She got it anyway!

If you can, I would suggest you call the manufacturer of Zometa and
insist on speaking to someone in charge. Tell them the predicament you
find yourself in and "insist" they give you the answer you need so that
you can make a decision about the dental work.

BTW, Americans are no more "sue crazy" than any other people, in my
opinion. We just have people here (just like other countries do) who
are brave enough to come forward and share their consequences with
certain drugs to help others avoid the consequences if they can. The
drug companies just seem to know that most people won't come forward
with problems so many suffer before we get to find out which drugs are
safe and which are not.

If you decide to call Zometa's makers and get any answers will you
please post the answer so others like myself will know when we can
safely have dental surgery if necessary? Thank you so much!

Bea

'NO FORWARDS OR SPAM, PLEASE"

Maybe Tim can answer this - if there is no known advancement of a cancer -
why would a doctor prescribe Zometa??? I know that my doctors have never
mentioned it as a possibility.

Tammy


"Mary E." <happy@home.com> wrote in message
news:fAy%h.34732$M.24924@news-server.bigpond.net.au...
>I was diagnosed with bilateral bc negative node involvement grade 2 with 1
>tumor of 2.5cm in size on the left breast and 4 other small tumours on the
>right side. I had a bilateral mastectomy with chemotherapy of FEC and
>taxotere over a period of 4 months. I finished my treatment August 06.
>Since then I really didnt want to take hormone therapy (but took
>alternative treatments which were stretching the budget) so I then
>reluctantly decided to take Arimidex and also Zometa (for the bones).
>Unfortunately during the last week I developed an abscess in my back molar
>and subsequently it is no longer alive. The only way out of this
>predicament is to have the tooth either extracted or root canal which is
>very costly. Because of this drug, extraction is out of the question due
>to the side effects of "osteocronosis of the Jaw" which is rare but does
>happen. Has anyone out there had this drug and how long does it stay in
>the system for before you can have an extraction? By the way, my dentist
>of 9 years refused to do the job as she was too worried of the
>consequences.
> Mary E.
>

Mary E., I think this ADA site can be helpful to you. It also gives the
phone number for the Novartis Oncology Medical Services:
1-888-669-6682

They also give another number: 1-800-882-6577

The American Dental Assn. is also having a seminar on 5/30/07 which is
about this subject. I do hope we will get more answers to this.
The url for the ADA page is:

http://www.ada.org/prof/resources/pu...articleid=1394

Do hope you get the answers you need to make the right decision.

Bea

'NO FORWARDS OR SPAM, PLEASE"

I feel the information you need is imperative to all of us who have been
given the Zometa infusion so I called the Novartis 1-888-669-6682 and
spoke to a rep. She said she could not find any information on how long
one has to wait before having dental surgery after taking Zometa. She
says they can't do a clinical trial to find out because they can't get
enough bc women to have the dental work after they have had Zometa.
What a joke! I wonder why??

I told her this drug was put into our bodies and we have a right to get
answers to our questions. She is going to discuss this with her
supervisor and get back to me (I hope.).

However, she did say that they do have information they will only
release to "medical professionals". If your dentist will call the
number I gave, they hopefully can give her more information and the both
of you can make a better decision as to what to do. I told her I feel
I have just as much or more of a right to any and all information they
can give a medical professional since their drug is in "my" body! But
I do think you might consider asking your dentist to call 1-888-669-6682
and discussing your predicament with them.

Best of luck to you,

Bea

'NO FORWARDS OR SPAM, PLEASE"

Try and find a dentist who specializes in this problem - it has become
somewhat of a specialty.
Greta

"Bea Oo" <pm95sb@webtv.net> wrote in message
news:17087-463F2887-669@storefull-3254.bay.webtv.net...
> >Has anyone out there had this drug and how
>> long does it stay in the system for before you
>> can have an extraction?
>>Mary
>
> Mary, I am on Arimidex and my former Oncologist gave me an infusion of
> Zometa. I had such a horrible reaction (thank goodness!) to the Zometa
> that I thought I would have to be hospitalized. So...I refused to take
> it again and he agreed with my decision.
>
> Your question about how long it stays in your system was one that
> greatly concerned me. I spoke to a dentist who did not know so I wrote
> to the manufacturers of Zometa and asked them this question. Not only
> for myself but for all the other women out there who I knew probably
> would want to know.

Good for you!

> That was months ago and to date they have still not
> replied to my email. I think it may be because they do not know! We
> have a right to know the answer to this question! How can they put out
> such a drug on the market and not be able to tell us how long it can
> last in our systems when it has such a horrendous side effect.

Quite right!
>
....
>
> If you can, I would suggest you call the manufacturer of Zometa and
> insist on speaking to someone in charge. Tell them the predicament you
> find yourself in and "insist" they give you the answer you need so that
> you can make a decision about the dental work.

Very wise advice.
>
> BTW, Americans are no more "sue crazy" than any other people, in my
> opinion.

I'm sure that's true, but many people do think that it's an American
influence, they hear about the huge sums successfully claimed by litigants.


> We just have people here (just like other countries do) who
> are brave enough to come forward and share their consequences with
> certain drugs to help others avoid the consequences if they can.

I honestly don't think it's purely from such an altruistic motive.

> The
> drug companies just seem to know that most people won't come forward
> with problems so many suffer before we get to find out which drugs are
> safe and which are not.

It's up to them to do the research before a drug is licensed.
>
> If you decide to call Zometa's makers and get any answers will you
> please post the answer so others like myself will know when we can
> safely have dental surgery if necessary? Thank you so much!

Hear hear!

Mary

R. Fizek wrote:
> Maybe Tim can answer this - if there is no known advancement of a cancer -
> why would a doctor prescribe Zometa??? I know that my doctors have never
> mentioned it as a possibility.
>
> Tammy
>
>

Because they are prescribing Arimidex or some such, which increases the
risk of osteoporosis, and so if you are already at risk of the latter
then a bisphosphonate to strengthen the bones sounds like a good idea.

And they are prescribing the Arimidex to reduce the risk of cancer
recurrence or to reduce the rate of spread, depending on situation.

On the other hand, if your bone density is good and your calcium levels
etc look OK, and you don't have uncontrolled bone mets, or if you have
kidney problems, then it wouldn't be indicated.


Tim

Bea Oo wrote:
> I spoke to a dentist who did not know so I wrote
> to the manufacturers of Zometa and asked them this question. Not only
> for myself but for all the other women out there who I knew probably
> would want to know. That was months ago and to date they have still not
> replied to my email. I think it may be because they do not know! We
> have a right to know the answer to this question! How can they put out
> such a drug on the market and not be able to tell us how long it can
> last in our systems when it has such a horrendous side effect.
>
They don't know, and they say so in their prescribing sheet, as I said
in my earlier post. It is just too rare an occurrence, and as you say
they can't ethically do a trial to find out, they can only study the
incidences that do occur. With only a handful of reported cases it must
be hard to find anyone who took Zometa for years and then stopped for
years then got ONJ. Few stop. They could go around asking all ONJ
patients whether they ever took bisphosphonates, but it would still take
a long time to answer the question. You've really got to balance this
risk against the nasties that can happen if you *don't* take it, like
incontinence, loss of mobility and paralysis. You can't take all the
risk out of life.

You can get the prescribing sheet from their website if you just say you
are a US resident and click on "prescribing information" at the bottom
of the page.

> I was
> once told by a doctor that the chances of someone in my family getting a
> certain chronic illness was "one in a million". Well, guess what? They
> were wrong! She got it anyway!
>
That doesn't make them wrong statistically speaking (although they might
well have been wrong in fact). If she got it and a million others
didn't, then they were right and she was just unlucky. You can equally
fairly say there is a one in a million chance of getting struck by
lightning, but that is no comfort to the one who gets hit. Remember
there are currently 6500 "ones in a million" in the world.

> If you can, I would suggest you call the manufacturer of Zometa and
> insist on speaking to someone in charge. Tell them the predicament you
> find yourself in and "insist" they give you the answer you need so that
> you can make a decision about the dental work.
>
At best they will be honest and tell you they don't know. At worst they
will lie to get rid of you. Anyway the answer she and her dentist
actually most need is the risk of occurrence in her situation, and that
is in the citation I gave. Whether changing her prescription will alter
that risk, and by how much, is a lesser matter.

> BTW, Americans are no more "sue crazy" than any other people, in my
> opinion.

Maybe, but they do set records in the size of awards, which in turn
pushes up insurance costs.


Tim

"Mary Fisher" <mary.fisher@zetnet.co.uk> wrote in message
news:463eec08$0$759$4c56ba96@master.news.zetnet.ne t...
>
> "Mary E." <happy@home.com> wrote in message
> news:fAy%h.34732$M.24924@news-server.bigpond.net.au...
>>I was diagnosed with bilateral bc negative node involvement grade 2 with 1
>>tumor of 2.5cm in size on the left breast and 4 other small tumours on the
>>right side. I had a bilateral mastectomy with chemotherapy of FEC and
>>taxotere over a period of 4 months. I finished my treatment August 06.
>>Since then I really didnt want to take hormone therapy (but took
>>alternative treatments which were stretching the budget) so I then
>>reluctantly decided to take Arimidex and also Zometa (for the bones).
>>Unfortunately during the last week I developed an abscess in my back molar
>>and subsequently it is no longer alive. The only way out of this
>>predicament is to have the tooth either extracted or root canal which is
>>very costly. Because of this drug, extraction is out of the question due
>>to the side effects of "osteocronosis of the Jaw" which is rare but does
>>happen. Has anyone out there had this drug and how long does it stay in
>>the system for before you can have an extraction? By the way, my dentist
>>of 9 years refused to do the job as she was too worried of the
>>consequences.
>> Mary E.
>
> I can't answer your question but it's very worrying that medical
> professionals are more and more reluctant to do even minor surgery because
> there is a tiny risk. Here in England it's happening too but many of us
> feel that it's because of an eagerness for litigation by some patients,
> especially those in USA. We hear about awards of millions of dollars for a
> minor damage. Why can't patients simply accept that nobody's perfect, that
> accidents WILL happen and that doctors and surgeons aren't either god or
> magicians?
>
> The love of money ... :-(
>
> Currently I'm undergoing root canal treatment which is taking weeks and it
> has a poor prognosis (I said that it could see me out!) but I use that
> tooth which is the last in that jaw and sort of matches the only one
> opposing it. When I began the treatment I was taking Arimidex (but only
> for four months and not for bc) and it didn't ring any bells with the
> dentist - thank goodness.
>
> But every time I go I have to say that I have a very slight systolic
> murmur. They refuse to do dentistry here if you have a murmur so I had to
> have an expensive (for the NHS) ultra-sound examination to show that my
> valves were all working well and a letter from that hospital to the
> dentist to certify it. It was years ago, I've argued ever since that that
> letter should be sufficient and that I wasn't prepared to have another
> test, the letter should be in my file.The murmur was discovered nearly
> forty years ago by an enthusiastic doctor, it had never been detected
> before. It has probably been there for more than sixty years, since I had
> a fever when I was five. but they have to cover themselves ...
>
> None of this helps you, I'm sorry. I hope you have a satisfactory outcome
> of your dilemma.
>
> Mary


Root canal.......ouch and I can sympathize.

> BTW, Americans are no more "sue crazy" than any other people, in my
> opinion. We just have people here (just like other countries do) who
> are brave enough to come forward and share their consequences with
> certain drugs to help others avoid the consequences if they can. The
> drug companies just seem to know that most people won't come forward
> with problems so many suffer before we get to find out which drugs are
> safe and which are not.

I think Americans are nuts, did you hear the most recent case, a man is
sueing for millions of dollars since a drycleaner lost his pants.

>
> If you decide to call Zometa's makers and get any answers will you
> please post the answer so others like myself will know when we can
> safely have dental surgery if necessary? Thank you so much!
>
> Bea
>
> 'NO FORWARDS OR SPAM, PLEASE"
>

>I think Americans are nuts, did you hear the
> most recent case, a man is sueing for millions
> of dollars since a drycleaner lost his pants.
>Alex

Are you an American?? Are you aware you are calling your own people
"nuts" in front of the entire world?<g

BTW, anyone can sue for anything. In my opinion, it's the people who
sit on the juries and award such outrageous amounts who really should
have their brains checked. Those must have been some valuable pants to
be worth a million dollars to that man. I had not heard of "that" one
yet. I learn so much from this group!

Bea

'NO FORWARDS OR SPAM, PLEASE"

"Bea Oo" <pm95sb@webtv.net> wrote in message
news:437-463FAAC3-21@storefull-3251.bay.webtv.net...
> >I think Americans are nuts, did you hear the
>> most recent case, a man is sueing for millions
>> of dollars since a drycleaner lost his pants.
>>Alex
>
> Are you an American?? Are you aware you are calling your own people
> "nuts" in front of the entire world?<g
>
> BTW, anyone can sue for anything. In my opinion, it's the people who
> sit on the juries and award such outrageous amounts who really should
> have their brains checked. Those must have been some valuable pants to
> be worth a million dollars to that man. I had not heard of "that" one
> yet. I learn so much from this group!
>
> Bea
>
> 'NO FORWARDS OR SPAM, PLEASE"

Do juries decide on amounts? I thought that was in the judges' gift.

Mary

"alex" <alex@noemail.ctv> wrote in message
news:E-ednVG14pNZOaLbnZ2dnUVZ_uOmnZ2d@comcast.com...
>
> "Mary Fisher" <mary.fisher@zetnet.co.uk> wrote in message
> news:463eec08$0$759$4c56ba96@master.news.zetnet.ne t...
>>
>> "Mary E." <happy@home.com> wrote in message
>> news:fAy%h.34732$M.24924@news-server.bigpond.net.au...
>>>I was diagnosed with bilateral bc negative node involvement grade 2 with
>>>1 tumor of 2.5cm in size on the left breast and 4 other small tumours on
>>>the right side. I had a bilateral mastectomy with chemotherapy of FEC
>>>and taxotere over a period of 4 months. I finished my treatment August
>>>06. Since then I really didnt want to take hormone therapy (but took
>>>alternative treatments which were stretching the budget) so I then
>>>reluctantly decided to take Arimidex and also Zometa (for the bones).
>>>Unfortunately during the last week I developed an abscess in my back
>>>molar and subsequently it is no longer alive. The only way out of this
>>>predicament is to have the tooth either extracted or root canal which is
>>>very costly. Because of this drug, extraction is out of the question due
>>>to the side effects of "osteocronosis of the Jaw" which is rare but does
>>>happen. Has anyone out there had this drug and how long does it stay in
>>>the system for before you can have an extraction? By the way, my dentist
>>>of 9 years refused to do the job as she was too worried of the
>>>consequences.
>>> Mary E.
>>
>> I can't answer your question but it's very worrying that medical
>> professionals are more and more reluctant to do even minor surgery
>> because there is a tiny risk. Here in England it's happening too but many
>> of us feel that it's because of an eagerness for litigation by some
>> patients, especially those in USA. We hear about awards of millions of
>> dollars for a minor damage. Why can't patients simply accept that
>> nobody's perfect, that accidents WILL happen and that doctors and
>> surgeons aren't either god or magicians?
>>
>> The love of money ... :-(
>>
>> Currently I'm undergoing root canal treatment which is taking weeks and
>> it has a poor prognosis (I said that it could see me out!) but I use that
>> tooth which is the last in that jaw and sort of matches the only one
>> opposing it. When I began the treatment I was taking Arimidex (but only
>> for four months and not for bc) and it didn't ring any bells with the
>> dentist - thank goodness.
>>
>> But every time I go I have to say that I have a very slight systolic
>> murmur. They refuse to do dentistry here if you have a murmur so I had to
>> have an expensive (for the NHS) ultra-sound examination to show that my
>> valves were all working well and a letter from that hospital to the
>> dentist to certify it. It was years ago, I've argued ever since that that
>> letter should be sufficient and that I wasn't prepared to have another
>> test, the letter should be in my file.The murmur was discovered nearly
>> forty years ago by an enthusiastic doctor, it had never been detected
>> before. It has probably been there for more than sixty years, since I had
>> a fever when I was five. but they have to cover themselves ...
>>
>> None of this helps you, I'm sorry. I hope you have a satisfactory outcome
>> of your dilemma.
>>
>> Mary
>
>
> Root canal.......ouch and I can sympathize.

I had LOTS of local :-)

Now the nerves are out it's no problem.

Mary
>
>

Mary Fisher wrote:
> "Bea Oo" <pm95sb@webtv.net> wrote in message
> news:437-463FAAC3-21@storefull-3251.bay.webtv.net...
>>> I think Americans are nuts, did you hear the
>>> most recent case, a man is sueing for millions
>>> of dollars since a drycleaner lost his pants.
>>> Alex
>> Are you an American?? Are you aware you are calling your own people
>> "nuts" in front of the entire world?<g
>>
>> BTW, anyone can sue for anything. In my opinion, it's the people who
>> sit on the juries and award such outrageous amounts who really should
>> have their brains checked. Those must have been some valuable pants to
>> be worth a million dollars to that man. I had not heard of "that" one
>> yet. I learn so much from this group!
>>
>> Bea
>>
>> 'NO FORWARDS OR SPAM, PLEASE"
>
> Do juries decide on amounts? I thought that was in the judges' gift.
>
> Mary
>
>
That's the critical difference between the US and UK systems.

Tim

"Tim Jackson" <tim@tim-jackson.co.uk> wrote in message
news:4640a7a9$0$8711$ed2619ec@ptn-nntp-reader02.plus.net...

>>>
>>> BTW, anyone can sue for anything. In my opinion, it's the people who
>>> sit on the juries and award such outrageous amounts who really should
>>> have their brains checked. Those must have been some valuable pants to
>>> be worth a million dollars to that man. I had not heard of "that" one
>>> yet. I learn so much from this group!
>>>
>>> Bea
>>>
>>> 'NO FORWARDS OR SPAM, PLEASE"
>>
>> Do juries decide on amounts? I thought that was in the judges' gift.
>>
>> Mary
> That's the critical difference between the US and UK systems.

Really? I honestly didn't know that!

You've been watching daytime telly again :-)

Mary
>
> Tim

"Greta" <sarek-gmc@worldnet.att.net> wrote in message
news:KyH%h.431560$5j1.169980@bgtnsc04-news.ops.worldnet.att.net...
> Try and find a dentist who specializes in this problem - it has become
> somewhat of a specialty.
> Greta
>thanks all for your responses. I have had my tooth cleaned out and will be
>starting root canal treatment next Tuesday! I will be following up with
>the drug company for their comments on Zometa.
Cheers,
Mary E.

Mary,
A couple of months ago my oncologist changed me from Zometa infusions to
Aredia which is an older but similar medication. He said that it was
somewhat less of a problem for side effects. I had been on Zometa monthly
since October of 2004 first at 4 mgs then reduced to 3mgs when some slight
kidney problems developed. He theorized opined) that some of the problem
with the jaw and Zometa might turn out (after more research) to have
something to do with the speed of the infusion. Some centers use 20
minutes - while I believe now at least 30 minutes is being used. Aredia
takes a good 2 hours.
Greta