Arimidex vs Exemestane vs Letro on your lipids

[Mrtae]

I have some ideas learned through what others have said on the boards about these three. I'll list them.

Arimidex(Anastozole) - Estrogen bounce back after stoppage of usage, and very harsh on your lipids.

Exemestane(Aromasin) - No estrogen bounce back, not harsh on your lipids

Letro - No estrogen bounce back, not harsh on your lipids, however, incredibly strong and can easily be over used and cause too low estrogen. Letro can also reverse gyno. Also, this has to be taken for a bit to build up in your system.

Now seems as everyone recommends using Exemestane or if your an experienced person, Letro.

So, I got to researching for case studies on these.

First, study I found, "http://clincancerres.aacrjournals.org/content/9/1/468s.full?maxtoshow=&HITS=10&hits=10&RESULTFORMAT=&fulltext=aromasin+lipid+profile&searchid=1128805196040_908&stored_search=&FIRSTINDEX=0&journalcode=clincanres"

This study states "Anastrozole treatment has no impact on plasma lipid levels, whereas both letrozole and exemestane have an unfavorable effect."
Also, it states "To date, there are no data suggesting any major differences in clinical efficacy between the newer generation AIs anastrozole and letrozole."

As far as half lives and steady states "At clinically administered doses, the plasma half-lives of anastrozole (1 mg once daily), letrozole (2.5 mg once daily), and exemestane (25 mg once daily) are 41–48 h, 2–4 days, and 27 h, respectively. Time to steady-state plasma levels is 7 days for both anastrozole and exemestane and 60 days for letrozole. Androgenic side effects have only been reported with exemestane."

So from that study, I would prefer to take Arimidex.

Here's another article:"http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2361692/"
This states Arimidex has no effect on lipids, Letro had adverse effects, while exemestane has little effect or slightly improved effect on lipids.
"Some studies show anastrozole as generally having little effect on lipids...Letrozole has been associated with adverse effects on lipid profiles in some studies...By contrast, exemestane, which has been studied in slightly more detail, may either have little effect or may be associated with slightly improved lipid profiles."

So, the winner there would be exemestane.

Third article I found: "http://www.nature.com/bjc/journal/v93/n1s/full/6602692a.html".

"Anastrozole In several small studies, anastrozole showed no marked effects on lipid profile"
"Letrozole Increases in total serum cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, apo B and serum-lipid risk ratios for cardiovascular disease were found in some studies"
"ExemestaneThe lipid effects of exemestane have, perhaps, been more closely studied than those of the other aromatase inhibitors. In animal studies, exemestane reversed the increase in LDL cholesterol and total cholesterol seen in ovariectomized cycling Sprague–Dawley rats"

Same thing there mostly.

What I've been finding by looking at all these articles is conflicting information really, however, the trend seems to be Arimidex has no effect on lipids, Letro has an adverse effect, and Aromasin has a no effect to a little improved effect.

To me, what I've learned from this is that if I have the money, go for Aromasin, if not, go for Arimidex as far as lipids are concerned.

The down side to Aromasin is that if you take too much, you will have to wait to make new aromatase enzymes, as it is a suicidal aromatase inhibitor and destroys itself and the enzyme it selects.

I'm sure there's going to be comments about how to only take Aromasin since no bounce back. As a solution to that, could you just keep taking Arimidex say two weeks after your last test shot, to give your test and estrogen time to decrease, while keeping nolva on hand?

I am only posting what I've been finding and reading, I look forward to responses from others and data they find. The reason I've done this, is that I'm not one to just go with how things are just understood to be true. I like to see evidence.

 

[saps]

Nice little thread post/thread here Mrtae.
I'll share my reaction.
First perhaps you could edit the OP so that the 3 articles are directly linked? I was able to get to them all but one click shopping is going to be better.
Now for the real stuff. You're pretty much right in your analysis. What the articles suggest, your conclusions and your general assessment of what most people do.
My best guess for guys here in PM would be as follows: About 6 out of 10 use a-dex. Its just been the one that's en vogue for so long. 3 out of 10 use aromasin, it is certainly growing in popularity but I'd easily say it has no more than half the following of adex. At most 1 in 10 use letro. For most its just too much and it has a reputation; but we'll get into that later.
I applaud your conviction for evidence. That's a double edged sword though. On the one hand yes absolutely you need to see what mass research has to say. This goes a long way to forming and drawing empirically based conclusions and opinions. However, as is my mantra all the text book data in the world will not substitute for personal knowledge and experience.
By way of for instance. Alpha6164 is an MD and in the cholesterol thread he shared the data study which shows that Crestor is the only statin clinically shown to raise HDL, Lipitor had no effect. This case study was conducted on something like 5-10K people. The funny thing is both Alpha and I have used Lipitor and Crestor and for the two of us Lipitor did raise our HDL, not only raised it but raised it more than Crestor did.
What conclusions to draw here? Well as always you don't throw out a study conducted on 10K people. If making a blanket statement yes one must conclude that Crestor is the superior statin. But rarely in life are there absolutes. There are always exceptions. Like I always say you never know till you try.
So looking for the most effective AI well according to the studies its letro hands down. That will purge your body of estrogen. Why isnt it the most used then? Personal experience teaches us that completely ridding the male body of estrogen is a bad thing. In terms of adex vs aromasin. I've used both. Adex for years and then only in recent years aromasin. I've had my cholesterol taken off any aas, on aas, on aas with adex and on aas with aromasin. My personal trials tell me that in my body aromasin is better for my cholesterol. Its marginal to be sure but its still a tangible measurable difference. Will this be the case for everyone, perhaps but again you never really know till you try.
My outlook then would be this. Use the textbooks so to speak to form opinions. Use others personal experience to enhance those opinions. Then test it out for yourself. Perhaps someone starts with adex and their cholestrol doesn't get worse. Well for better or worse that might be enough to conclude it fine and they never try aromasin. Is that good or bad? Can't really say. Because I'm not advocating one must try everything out there before making a final decision. I was personally content with adex for years but then over time began to realize it might be part of an ever worsening cholesterol situation for me. I made changes that exceed merely switching AI's so I don't wanna give sole credit for my improved cholesterol to switching from adex to aromasin. We don't live in a vacuum and there is something for holistic thinking.
The other side of the coin as I somewhat alluded to early is making conclusions without trying everything. Many people who don't use letro or even advocate against its use have never even tried it. Sure they can regurgitate the common wisdom on it. But something is lacking when its dismissed merely because of so called conventional wisdom and not experience. How many people have never tried Deca because of the fear and impression of Deca Dick? How many avoid tren due to its reputation of having incredibly harsh sides? How many avoid winny because it destroys the joints?
In no way I am judging or commending those who make decisions to use or not use a compound in the BB game based on the internet research or the testimony of others. I'm just saying though you must allow the possibility that something you have never tried could be the cat's meow for you. But if you are willing to live with the decisions you make on what to and not to put into your system then thats all any of us can ask for.

 

[Mrtae]

Great reply Saps and I definitely feel you and I are on the same page.
My preferred method is read up and research studies backed by data, listen and take note to others' experiences, then try it all out for myself.

With time, I will have a personal experience with all three and know how they affect my body.

 

[saps]

Great reply Saps and I definitely feel you and I are on the same page.
My preferred method is read up and research studies backed by data, listen and take note to others' experiences, then try it all out for myself.

With time, I will have a personal experience with all three and know how they affect my body.

Lovely and frankly that's all anyone can ask for if intrigued research, then try and see. Continue or discontinue based on personal experience.

 

[spartan]

Just my 2 cents but I tried Letro and I hated it. Killed my libido and my joints, plus it just made me feel overall crummy. So I am now a fan of adex. Have never tried aromasin, but may some day, depending on blood work. So far blood work has been right on. Never had blood work while on letro because I got off it in a short period of time.

 

[saps]

Just my 2 cents but I tried Letro and I hated it. Killed my libido and my joints, plus it just made me feel overall crummy. So I am now a fan of adex. Have never tried aromasin, but may some day, depending on blood work. So far blood work has been right on. Never had blood work while on letro because I got off it in a short period of time.

And that's all you can do is try and see. Now I will concede this point. Letro's reputation is well earned and if recommending an AI its going to be last on my list to try for most.

 

[bigoso]

great post saps...couldn't agree more. On letro I have had none of the sides people talk about...no joint issues, sex drive was great, etc....on arimidex for HRT and have used it before hrt...estradiol was always in range, no negative sides etc..used aromasin twice and just did not respond...estradiol and estrone were off the charts both times...all kinds of estro related sides as well

 

[saps]

great post saps...couldn't agree more. On letro I have had none of the sides people talk about...no joint issues, sex drive was great, etc....on arimidex for HRT and have used it before hrt...estradiol was always in range, no negative sides etc..used aromasin twice and just did not respond...estradiol and estrone were off the charts both times...all kinds of estro related sides as well

Glad you chimed in. This just shows how different we all are. If you ask me exemastane is the best but clearly you've had a different experience. No one is more or less right. Its truly different strokes for different folks. Now having said that; there are trends and statistical likelihoods.

 

[bbg420]

half wrong bro, with letrozole it is very strong and it can reverse gyno in some situations but estrogen rebound is the worst with letrozole, aromasin is the only one to my knowlege that does not cause rebound

 

[bbg420]

i almost forgot letrozole is the worst on lipids aswell

 

[saps]

half wrong bro, with letrozole it is very strong and it can reverse gyno in some situations but estrogen rebound is the worst with letrozole, aromasin is the only one to my knowlege that does not cause rebound

correct, exemastane is a suicidal inhibitor, letrozole and anastrozole are not

 

[hemipower]

I really need to check my lipids out...but I have used exem exclusively for a couple of years now. Letro is far too strong in my opinion. I try not to use any AI at all when only on 200-250mg test which is MOST of the year...if I bump it up in the winter to 400-500 or so then typically I will be on MINIMAL amounts of exemestane. As little as 6mg a day has been effective at bringing my estro down from 77 to high normal in the 40s if I remember correctly. But I haven't checked my lipids in over a year. I will on this next set of blood work in a couple of months but then, I plan to take a little winstrol to harden up for a vacation and I know that will send HDL and LDL haywire for a while...so if it's messed up won't know if its from AI use or from winny.

When playing the "poly-pharmaceutical" game it's often hard to tell what is causing what side effect...is it the aas I am on, or the antiE, or....? Which is why I try to spend MOST of the year on only HRT dose test and gh and no AI. This is when I feel the best...but of course I LOOK best when I bump the test up, add in masteron, bump up the gh, etc.

 

[saps]

I really need to check my lipids out...but I have used exem exclusively for a couple of years now. Letro is far too strong in my opinion. I try not to use any AI at all when only on 200-250mg test which is MOST of the year...if I bump it up in the winter to 400-500 or so then typically I will be on MINIMAL amounts of exemestane. As little as 6mg a day has been effective at bringing my estro down from 77 to high normal in the 40s if I remember correctly. But I haven't checked my lipids in over a year. I will on this next set of blood work in a couple of months but then, I plan to take a little winstrol to harden up for a vacation and I know that will send HDL and LDL haywire for a while...so if it's messed up won't know if its from AI use or from winny.

When playing the "poly-pharmaceutical" game it's often hard to tell what is causing what side effect...is it the aas I am on, or the antiE, or....? Which is why I try to spend MOST of the year on only HRT dose test and gh and no AI. This is when I feel the best...but of course I LOOK best when I bump the test up, add in masteron, bump up the gh, etc.

Good post. Its important to establish some baselines. For me I have numbers for when I'm blasting as well as number for when I'm cruising. I will say that I focus more on the cruising numbers myself because as you say things get out of whack when you start adding multiple compounds into the equation.
Often times a phone call to the MD and you can get a cholesterol check without an appt. Just go to the lab and you get your results later that day. So if you have a period when you know results might be skewed just plan around it.

 

[geronimo542]

letro is super strong and I have found that it dries me up when I am cutting but to much and it can lead to your joint aching also it can kill your sex drive. Exemestane differs in arimidex in the fact that the half life is much longer also it increases sex drive. I feel its potency is similiar to letro but its safer and fool proof

 

[saps]

Um actually exemastane has a shorter half life than anastrozole

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk

 

[kinglewy]

letro is super strong and I have found that it dries me up when I am cutting but to much and it can lead to your joint aching also it can kill your sex drive. Exemestane differs in arimidex in the fact that the half life is much longer also it increases sex drive. I feel its potency is similiar to letro but its safer and fool proof

Exemastane actually does the opposite for me. If I even do the tiniest amount it kills my sex drive.

 

[loot]

Bumping; Thread comes up on Google search, 1st page! Keywords; arimidex increase ldl lipids

So the OP's early synopsis says Arimidex (Anastrozole) screws your lipids badly.
I'm frustrated reading pubmed studies about post-menapausal Asian women and AI.

So in desperation I come back to my brothers trying to improve my bad lipids before the Doc puts me on statins... which I know better than to do that after research. If I have Familial Hypercholesteremia I will, however.

MD has an article warning about lipids and AI's;
The Downside of Aromatase Inhibition: Side effects worth it?

And my endo, before going to a TRT Doc, refused to give me an AI due to my lipids being at the high end of the safe range. He said AI's increase LDL.

TRT; Recently reduced to 80mg cyp 1x Week w/ .5mg Anastrozole 1x Week.
I went over range for Total Serum T on 100mg cyp. so he reduced me. Now bumping 800 TT. ***range 348-1197***

Free T calculated = 1.91% (14.7 ng/dL)
Bio-available T = 44.7% (345 ng/dL)
E2 = 31 pg/dL (was 24.6 prev. labs) ***range 7.6-42.6***
SHBG = 44.2 nmol/L (was 65.7 prev. labs) ***range 19.3-76.4

Anyone have links or experience that can help me figure this out? Docs are not into optimal health, just treating disease with drugs based on info that may be stale.

 

[kroozr]

arimidex does that

 

[jrock00123]

I doubt 0.5mg adex per week will have much if any influence on lipids. Search for recent threads on diet and supplements to improve lipids. Also LDL itself is not necessarily bad. You should have your doc do a VAP to tell what's really going on. We're concerned with the oxidation of LDL, not necessarily the serum concentration.