Pregnancy and lactation | Tamoxifen

Pregnancy and lactation

Since there is no experience of using tamoxifen in pregnancy, it should not be taken during pregnancy. For this reason, pregnancy should be ruled out if possible before starting therapy. During and until about two months after completion of therapy, women of childbearing age should avoid pregnancy with a non-hormonal contraceptive method.

Tamoxifen should also not be used during the breastfeeding period. It is not yet known whether the active ingredient can be detected in breast milk. However, it is known that high doses of tamoxifen completely stop milk production.

If the treatment is discontinued during the breastfeeding period, milk production is not expected even then. If it becomes apparent during the breastfeeding period that treatment with tamoxifen is unavoidable, breastfeeding must be stopped. If you are unsure, you should always consult your doctor or pharmacist.

Abuse in sport

Tamoxifen is also misused in competitive sports. Normally it is supposed to prevent the enlargement of the mammary glands in men (gynecomastia), which is a regular undesirable side effect of the use of anabolic steroids. Tamoxifen also increases the level of testosterone in the blood in men, which in turn causes an increase in muscle mass. Due to this fact, Tamoxifen has been listed as a banned substance in the doping list of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) since 2005.