Don't know did you see my information I posted for you re Arimidex?
ALEX

Excerpts from [http://www.hormoneprofile.com/salivaorserum.htm]:

SPECIAL REPORT from The John R. Lee, M.D. Medical Letter

Confusion exists among medical professionals and the general public,
about the question of progesterone absorption.

This confusion often hinges on a misunderstanding of the test, used to
measure progesterone levels in the body. Let us try to clarify the
issue.

---------------

What a Blood Test Measures  [Water- vs Fat- Soluble]

[Sex Hormones are Fat-Soluble Steroids]

"Blood" tests for progesterone refer, to the serum or plasma
concentration of progesterone.

Plasma is the watery, non-cellular portion of the blood ... from which
cellular components (such as red blood cells and white blood cells), are
excluded.

Serum is essentially the same as plasma, except that fibrinogen has been
removed.

Serum and plasma (being watery) contain water-soluble (hydrophilic)
substances, ... such as water-soluble vitamins, carbohydrates, and
proteins.

Serum and plasma do Not contain fat-soluble (lipophilic) substances.

For the purposes of this discussion, serum and plasma are
interchangeable, and I will refer to them as serum.

Sex hormones such as progesterone, estrogen, and testosterone are
fat-soluble steroids, similar to cholesterol.

When you have a serum cholesterol measurement, you are measuring
cholesterol bound to protein, which makes it water-soluble.

(Recall that serum cholesterol is described as HDL or LDL cholesterol,
referring to the proteins to which it is bound.)

------------

How Progesterone Travels in Blood

The ovary-produced progesterone (found in serum) is also largely
protein-bound.

Protein-bound progesterone is Not readily bioavailable to receptors, in
target tissues throughout the body.

It is on its way to the liver, to be excreted in bile.

Only 2 to 5 percent of serum progesterone is "free" or
non-protein-bound.

This is the progesterone, available to target tissues and to saliva.

Thus, progesterone measured by serum levels is mostly a measure of
progesterone, that is Not going to be used by the body.

A serum test can be used to compare one woman's progesterone production
to that of another woman, ... or to test how much progesterone is being
made by a woman's ovaries.

When progesterone is given intravenously, 80 percent of it is taken up
by red blood cell membranes that are fatty in nature, and therefore
available to fat-soluble progesterone molecules.

Less than 20 percent will be found in serum.

It is obvious that serum levels would not detect the great majority of
the progesterone added to whole blood.

------------

Absorption of Transdermal Progesterone

Progesterone is a highly lipophilic (fat-loving) molecule, that is well
absorbed through skin into the underlying fat layer.

In fact, it is among the most lipophilic of the steroid hormones.

From the fat layer, the progesterone is taken up gradually by red blood
cell membranes, in capillaries passing through the fat.

The progesterone transported by red blood cell membranes, is readily
available to all target tissues and to saliva.

This progesterone is completely bioavailable, and readily measured by
saliva testing.

Only a small fraction of it is carried, by the watery serum.

Obviously, serum testing is not a good way to measure transdermal
progesterone absorption.

Yet, many doctors continue to question the skin absorption of
progesterone.

Some even imply that saliva testing is relatively unknown, and its
reliability is unproven.

This is an odd admission, since researchers have been using saliva
testing for years, ... and a number of laboratories offer routine saliva
hormone testing.

-------------

HOW TO USE SALIVA HORMONE ASSAY TO DETERMINE PROGESTERONE DOSAGE

Achieving Balance is the Key

The goal of progesterone supplementation, is to restore normal
physiologic levels of bioavailable progesterone.

Progesterone/estrogen balance is the key.

When sufficient numbers of normal ovulating women are tested by saliva
hormone assay, ... the typical range of progesterone is found to be 0.3
to 0.5 ng/ml.

Under usual circumstances, there should be no reason to exceed that
range.

---------------

Progesterone Levels and PMS

In PMS, for example, stress is often a factor. Stress increases cortisol
production.

Cortisol blockades some progesterone receptors, and thereby prevents
progesterone function.

To compete with this cortisol blockade, topical progesterone in the
range of 30 to 40 mg/day is sometimes initially required to achieve a
beneficial effect.

---------------

Progesterone and Endometriosis  

Likewise, in women with endometriosis, the goal is to increase
progesterone levels to that found in women two months pregnant.

(See the July 98 issue of the John Lee Medical Letter, for a more
detailed article on the causes and treatment of endometriosis.)

Progesterone dosage is determined largely by response: the right dose is
the amount that results in progressive decrease of endometriosis pain.

When pain is largely gone, levels can be decreased gradually over time
to doses necessary to maintain the progesterone benefit.

------------

Progesterone and Estrogen Receptors

In women whose doctors are giving them excessive supplemental estrogen,
a different problem must be faced.

Excessive estrogen in circumstances of deficient progesterone, induces a
decrease in receptor sensitivity.

One of progesterone's functions is to restore the normal sensitivity of
estrogen receptors.

When progesterone is restored, estrogen receptor sensitivity is restored
also.

It is not surprising that (in these cases) some women develop symptoms
of estrogen dominance (water retention, headaches, weight gain, swollen
breasts) when progesterone is first supplemented.

Obviously, the estrogen dose must be lowered.

If this is done too rapidly, however, hot flushes can occur.

The key is to reduce estrogen gradually, while progesterone is being
restored.

In my experience, estrogen dosage can be reduced 50 percent as soon as
progesterone is added. Then, every 2 to 3 months, the estrogen dose can
be further decreased gradually.

Many women eventually discover they do not need any supplemental
estrogen at all: the estrogen normally produced by body fat in
postmenopausal women, ... is often sufficient for its needs once the
progesterone is restored.

==========

Su_Texas writes:

While I don't understand about progesterone/etc yet, I am interested in
the saliva test as a way to check hormone levels.

???

Since our breast cancer treatments with aromatase inhibitors (Arimidex,
Femara, Aromasin, etc), are being based on suppressing estrogen
production, ... then it would seem reasonable to have some test (any
test!), to see if these meds are actually working or not, ... rather
than to wait for the cancer recurrence and/or death statistics, which
will be coming out many years down the road.

Susan, Su_Texas  my opinions