Patient/caregiver was educated on how to take Arimidex as follows:

1. Take this medication as ordered by your physician, for the duration prescribed without fail.
2. Take the medication dose at the same time, every day, to avoid forgetting the intake of medication.
3. Do not change the dose and frequency on this medication without consulting your doctor.
4. Taking the medication at regularly spaced intervals help maintain appropriate blood levels of Arimidex needed to derive the desired beneficial effect of preventing further tumor growth and preventing growth of new tumor masses in the breast tissue.
5. This medication can induce some nausea and vomiting, when taken on empty stomach. Taking the medication with a glass of water and some food or snack can help avoid these unpleasant gastrointestinal symptoms.
6. Take the Arimidex tablet as a whole, using a glass of water. If you encounter difficulty swallowing the whole tablet, you may cut the tablet and swallow it in pieces with a glass of water.
7. Arimidex works by reducing the estrogen production and levels of the estrogen hormone in the body. Individuals taking estrogen supplementation in the form of estrogen creams, birth control pills, or vaginal rings and post-menopausal women on estrogen supplementation to prevent osteoporosis could respond poorly to Arimidex treatment. Adding extra estrogen in the form of hormone supplementation could compromise the therapeutic benefit of Arimidex.
8. Arimidex can interact with a number of other medications and can precipitate serious reactions. If you are being newly started on Arimidex, discuss with your physician regarding all your current medications and their safety with Arimidex. Also, notify your physician regarding any current Arimidex intake, if you are being started on any new medications and discuss their safety with Arimidex.
9. Estrogen in postmenopausal women help in maintaining the bone mass and preventing development of osteoporosis. Reduced levels of estrogen hormone in the body, secondary to Arimidex use can predispose postmenopausal women to reduced bone mass, demineralization of bone, osteoporosis, weakened skeletal framework, and pathological fractures. Notify your physician regarding your history of osteoporosis and pathological fractures, if any and discuss your safety with Arimidex intake.
10. Demineralization of bone, secondary to Arimidex intake, can result in extreme elevation of blood calcium levels in the body. This can result in signs and symptoms of hypercalcemia, such as, exacerbation of constipation and reduced appetite. Individuals can also present with formation of calcium stones leading to episodes of severe flank or abdominal pain and difficulty passing urine. Notify your physician regarding your history of hypercalcemia and/or renal calcium stones, if any, and discuss your safety with Arimidex intake.
11. Severely elevated blood calcium levels, secondary to Arimidex intake, could also contribute to development or aggravation of underlying cardiac arrhythmias, leading to debility and sudden cardiac death. Notify your physician regarding your history of cardiac arrhythmias, if any, and discuss your safety with Arimidex intake.
12. Arimidex intake carries the risk of increasing the blood lipid levels and can contribute to forming atherogenic blocks in the blood vessels. Individuals with history of ischemic heart disease or blocks in the blood vessels supplying to the heart muscle can be at increased risk for development of chest pain and heart attack, leading to debility and sudden cardiac death. Notify your physician regarding your history of ischemic heart disease or chest pain or arrhythmias, if any, and discuss your safety with Arimidex intake.
13. Patients taking Arimidex can present with episodes of blood clot formation and thrombosis. Watch out closely for any sudden onset of signs of clot formation, deep venous thrombosis, and stroke, such as, numbness or weakness, especially in one half of the body, poor balance, problems with speech and/or vision, severe headache, confusion, pain in the calf muscle, cough and shortness of breath, and chest pain. Notify your physician regarding your history of deep vein thrombosis and clot formation, if any, and discuss your safety with Arimidex intake.
14. Arimidex takes some time to inhibit the estrogen production in the body, before any change in tumor progression and slowing of tumor growth are noted. Do not discontinue taking the medication without your physician’s consult, as you failed to see the desired improvement, immediately after taking the medication. Discontinuation on Arimidex use must be only on your physician recommendation.
15. Abrupt discontinuation of Arimidex intake can result in continued conversion of precursor of estrogen to estrogen, increased exposure of estrogen receptors in the breast tissue to estrogen, progression of tumor growth, and development of new tumor masses.
16. The dose of Arimidex could be closely regulated based on the tumor growth response and other side-effects developed. Maintain compliance with follow-up physician appointments and be accommodative to the plan of dose changes, until you show an optimum response.
17. If you miss a dose, try taking it at the earliest notice of noncompliance. If it is time for the next dose, skip the missed dose and take the dose scheduled. Do not take an extra dose to try making up for the missed dose. Notify your doctor and other health care personnel regarding your dose noncompliance.