Danazol vs. Femara

• Are Danazol and Femara the Same Thing?
• What Are Possible Side Effects of Danazol?
• What Are Possible Side Effects of Femara?
• What Is Danazol?
• What Is Femara?
• What Drugs Interact with Danazol?
• What Drugs Interact with Femara?
• How Should Danazol Be Taken?
• How Should Femara Be Taken?

Danazol and Femara (letrozole) are used to treat different types of breast disease.

Danazol is used to treat breast pain/tenderness/nodules due to fibrocystic breast disease, and also used to treat pelvic pain and infertility due to endometriosis.

Femara is used to treat breast cancer in postmenopausal women. Femara is often given to women who have been taking tamoxifen (Nolvadex, Soltamox) for 5 years.

Danazol and Femara belong to different drug classes. Danazol is a synthetic steroid and Femara is a non-steroidal aromatase inhibitor (lowers estrogen production).

A brand name of danazol is Danocrine.

Side effects of danazol and Femara that are similar include weight gain, flushing (warmth, redness, or tingly feeling), sweating, and hair loss.

Side effects of danazol that are different from Femara include acne, oily skin or hair, voice changes (hoarseness, changes in pitch), sore throat, abnormal growth of body hair (in women), vaginal dryness/irritation/burning/itching, decreased breast size, hair

loss, water retention or bloating, depression, irritability, changes in menstrual cycle (spotting, irregular bleeding, missed periods), nervousness, and mood changes.

Side effects of Femara that are different from danazol include hot flashes, joint/bone/muscle pain, tiredness, nausea, diarrhea, dizziness, trouble sleeping, drowsiness, weakness, headache, constipation, numbness/tingling/weakness/stiffness in your hand or fingers, and pain in your hand that spreads to your arm, wrist, forearm, or shoulder.

Danazol may interact with warfarin, carbamazepine, antidiabetic drugs, cyclosporine, tacrolimus, synthetic vitamin D analogs, and statins.

Femara may interact with other drugs.

Common side effects of Danazol include:

• weight gain,
• acne,
• oily skin or hair,
• flushing,
• sweating,
• hair loss,
• voice changes (hoarseness, changes in pitch),
• sore throat,
• abnormal growth of body hair (in women),
• vaginal dryness/irritation/burning/itching,
• decreased breast size,
• water retention or bloating,
• depression,
• irritability,
• changes in menstrual cycle (spotting, irregular bleeding, missed periods),
• nervousness, and
• mood changes.

Common side effects of Femara include:

• hot flashes,
• warmth in your face or chest,
• hair loss,
• joint/bone/muscle pain,
• tiredness,
• unusual sweating or night sweats,
• nausea,
• diarrhea,
• dizziness,
• trouble sleeping,
• drowsiness,
• weight gain,
• weakness,
• flushing (warmth, redness, or tingly feeling),
• headache,
• constipation,
• numbness/tingling/weakness/stiffness in your hand or fingers, or
• pain in your hand that spreads to your arm, wrist, forearm, or shoulder.

Danazol is a synthetic steroid used to treat pelvic pain and infertility due to endometriosis, and also to treat breast pain/tenderness/nodules due to fibrocystic breast disease. Danazol is available in generic form.

Femara (letrozole) is a non-steroidal aromatase inhibitor (lowers estrogen production) used to treat breast cancer in postmenopausal women. Femara is often given to women who have been taking tamoxifen (Nolvadex, Soltamox) for 5 years. Femara is available in generic form.

Danazol may interact with warfarin, or carbamazepine. Tell your doctor all medications and supplements you use. Danazol should not be used during pregnancy. It may harm a fetus. This drug is not recommended for use while breastfeeding.

Other drugs may interact with Femara. Tell your doctor all prescription and over-the-counter medications and supplements you use. Femara must not be used during pregnancy. It may harm a fetus. Femara is used mainly in women after menopause. If you have recently gone through menopause, discuss birth control with your doctor. Do not use birth control containing estrogen. It is unknown if this drug passes into breast milk and may harm a nursing infant. Breastfeeding while using this drug is not recommended.

To treat endometriosis, a starting dose of 800 mg danazol given in two divided doses is recommended. The total daily dosage of danazol for fibrocystic breast disease ranges from 100 mg to 400 mg, given in two divided doses depending upon patient response.

The recommended dose of Femara is one 2.5 mg tablet administered once a day, without regard to meals.