Make that Thursday of his week. My dr. Appt is next week.
Good luck, MOfWC. Hope the needle torture was not for nothing.
Bone density report is sort of a mixed bag. Definitely some improvement after the 18 months of daily Forteo injections. but still in osteoporosis range so I have to move on to Prolia, which is a twice a year injection. I’m willing to do it- assuming Vanderbilt can get me some grants, freebies like they did with the Forteo. It’s another killer expensive drug.
She (dr) had the numbers but couldn’t access the images- and she wants to see those because she doesn’t always trust the readings. She also said that the DEXA is not the only measure of bone health, and that my other markers (bloodwork) show a lot of improvement.
^MOWC congrats on some improvement, that’s encouraging. Will you continue with Forteo, or switch to Prolia.
My mom had that about month ago, she signed a paper, indicating the cost is $1200 and she could possibly incur a co pay of $200. Good luck with this !
No. I’ve used up my lifetime allotment of Forteo- 2 years total (6 months in 2007). On to the Prolia.
MOWC what other markers (bloodwork) do they look at?
I’m not sure. She mentioned throughout the Forteo that indications from the lab work were good as far as the Forteo working. She said the best way would be to look at a piece of bone- which obviously isn’t happening.
I’m getting my first Prolia injection this afternoon.
I believe the bloodwork they look at is calcium and Vit D3 levels.
Before the Prolia was a certainty, they checked my liver and kidney function, which I think they’ll look at every six months before the next injection.
They also look at your cholesterol for Prolia because it can make it go up. Mine is already a little high (my ratio is really good, though).
Update: I had my Prolia injection last Friday (today’s Monday) and have had no side effects. Zero, zip, nada, nothing. Not even a sore arm.
Yay, VeryHappy. Glad for that report. They told me it might burn a little going in, but no soreness afterwards. I have also read that some of the side effects don’t start until after the 2nd or 3rd shot.
Oh. Well, that’s no fair. Nothing to look forward to. 
I hope neither of us will have side effects. If you read enough online, you can get convinced you will die after the first injection!
Interesting and disturbing (as most of this osteo articles are!) NYT article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/02/health/osteoporosis-drugs-bones.html?em_pos=large&emc=edit_nn_20160602&nl=morning-briefing&nlid=73146837&_r=0
I love this article. The point is that people are foregoing the drugs because of extremely rare side effects, and are thereby foregoing the advantages of the drugs as well.
As for me, I’ll take the drugs. I have done so, and I will continue to do so. Osteoporosis is a certainty without them, whereas the serious side effects are extremely rare.
I don’t agree with much of it. I think they are minimizing the risks of the main class of drugs- the Fosomax, Boniva etc drugs. The way they work just doesn’t make sense to me. I personally had a small fracture NOT heal (the fracture was not from bone issues- a skiing fall) because I was on Boniva. I have a close friend (male) who had the spontaneous thigh fracture and it was extremely serious. I have another close friend who had the jaw issues.
I am not opposed to taking any meds, but I think there needs to be very careful consideration and an attempt- at least for me- to pick the one with the least chance of life-altering side effects. If I were 80 I might approach this a little differently, but for now I would not touch the Boniva type meds.
@abasket good link above. Scary for sure and agree with MOWC those side effects are scary, too. Tough decisions. Friend knows a woman who got out of bed and broke hip, and she knows someone with jaw necrosis! Ugh
@VeryHappy That’s what I decided too, after some agonizing. What did it was when I asked my endo if he’d personally ever seen a case of the jaw problem. He said, “No, but I’ve seen a lot of cases of osteoporosis doing a lot of damage.”
LasMa-- ask your dentist not just your endo.
My mom had bad side effects from Fosomax. At the time her doctor refused to believe the side effects were from Fosomax and gave her a hard time when she refused to take it anymore.
Google searches quickly confirmed the suspicion–later on the package insert was revised. Fortunately my mom stood by her initial assessment and quit the drug.
None of these drugs will give you bone as good as what you are born with. Best to protect that as well as possible.
I read that NY Times article, too. The accompanying photos showing bone loss were scary. Also worth reading are the comments – many from doctors and dentists who have treated the side effects, or women who have suffered from or know women who experienced the side effects.
So far, my doc is not recommending drugs, although I’m sure her tune will change as I age. What I will report – in case it helps anyone else – is that my blood work showed Vitamin D in the low normal range (despite taking supplements) and a high PTH level. She upped my vitamin D considerably, and my latest blood work shows considerable improvement. I’m not due for a dexa for another year, but I’m hoping 18 months of higher Vitamin D and lower PTH has a positive impact on that, too.