Exemestane: uses, dosing, side effects & brands
Exemestane is an aromatase inhibitor sold in the U.S. under 2 brand and generic names, for breast neoplasms. Below: what the FDA label says, every product that contains it, what the pills look like, and its recall record.
Key facts
- Drug class
- Aromatase Inhibitor
- Treats
- Breast Neoplasms
- Available as
- Tablet
- Sold as
- 2 products — Exemestane and Aromasin
- Prescription?
- Prescription only
- Generic available?
- Yes
- What the pharmacy pays
- about $18 for a 30-count supply — not your price
How exemestane is dosed
From the FDA label for Aromasin (application NDA020753). Other exemestane products — different forms, different strengths — are dosed differently. Follow the label for the one you were prescribed.
Recommended Dose: One 25 mg tablet once daily after a meal ( 2.1 ). 2.1 Recommended Dose The recommended dose of EXEMESTANE in early and advanced breast cancer is one 25 mg tablet once daily after a meal. • adjuvant treatment of postmenopausal women with estrogen-receptor positive early breast cancer who have received two to three years of tamoxifen and are switched to EXEMESTANE for completion of a total of five consecutive years of adjuvant hormonal therapy. • the treatment of advanced breast cancer in postmenopausal women whose disease has progressed following tamoxifen therapy. 2.2 Dose Modifications Concomitant use of strong CYP 3A4 inducers decreases exemestane exposure, For patients receiving EXEMESTANE with a strong CYP 3A4 inducer such as rifampicin or phenytoin, the recommended dose of EXEMESTANE is 50 mg once daily after a meal. [see Drug Interactions (7) and Clinical Pharmacology (12.3) ]
Exemestane side effects
The following clinically significant adverse reactions are described elsewhere in the labeling: • Reductions in Bone Mineral Density (BMD) [see Warnings and Precautions (5.1) ] • Early breast cancer: Adverse reactions occurring in ≥10% of patients in any treatment group (EXEMESTANE vs. tamoxifen) were hot flushes (21% vs. 20%), fatigue (16% vs. 15%), arthralgia (15% vs. 9%), headache (13% vs. 11%), insomnia (12% vs. 9%), and increased sweating (12% vs. 10%). Discontinuation rates due to AEs were similar between EXEMESTANE and tamoxifen (6% vs. 5%). Incidences of cardiac ischemic events (myocardial infarction, angina, and myocardial ischemia) were EXEMESTANE 1.6%, tamoxifen 0.6%. Incidence of cardiac failure: EXEMESTANE 0.4%, tamoxifen 0.3% ( 6 , 6.1 ). • Advanced breast cancer: Most common adverse reactions were mild to moderate and included hot flushes (13% vs. 5%), nausea (9% vs. 5%), fatigue (8% vs. 10%), increased sweating (4% vs. 8%), and increased appetite (3% vs. 6%) for EXEMESTANE and megestrol acetate, respectively ( 6 , 6.1 ). To report SUSPECTED ADVERSE REACTIONS, contact Greenstone LLC at 1-877-446-3679 or FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088 or www.fda.gov/medwatch . 6.1 Clinical Trial Experience Because clinical trials are conducted under widely varying conditions, adverse reaction rates observed in the clinical trials of a drug cannot be directly compared to rates in the…
Who shouldn’t take exemestane
EXEMESTANE is contraindicated in patients with a known hypersensitivity to the drug or to any of the excipients. Patients with a known hypersensitivity to the drug or to any of the excipients ( 4 ).
Exemestane drug interactions
Strong CYP 3A4 inducers: Concomitant use of strong CYP 3A4 inducers decreases exemestane exposure. Increase the EXEMESTANE dose to 50 mg ( 2.2 , 7 ). Drugs That Induce CYP 3A4 Co-medications that induce CYP 3A4 (e.g., rifampicin, phenytoin, carbamazepine, phenobarbital, or St. John's wort) may significantly decrease exposure to EXEMESTANE. Dose modification is recommended for patients who are also receiving a strong CYP 3A4 inducer [see Dosage and Administration (2.2) and Clinical Pharmacology (12.3) ] .
Every exemestane product we track (2)
Same active ingredient — different manufacturer, form, price and FDA recall record. That last one is what our independent score measures.
| # | Drug | Rating | Type | Form | Generic? | Pharmacy pays | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 72/100 | Prescription | Tablet | Generic | $18 | View → | |
| 2 | 64/100 | Prescription | Tablet | Generic | $18 | View → |
What exemestane pills look like
Imprint codes, colour and shape from the FDA’s labelling data. Match the imprint on your pill — or search any imprint.
How long exemestane keeps
No exemestane label we read sets a separate limit for after opening, but they do specify how it must be stored — and the stability behind any date assumes those conditions.
Does exemestane expire? The in-use limits and storage rules from its labelsWhat people report to the FDA about exemestane
The FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) collects reports from patients and clinicians. It holds 12,852 reports naming exemestane, and the FDA flagged 81% of those reports as serious. The effects reported most often — leaving out reports about overdose, misuse or the condition being treated, which dominate the raw list for common medicines:
- fatigue1,515 reports
- malignant neoplasm progression1,437 reports
- diarrhoea1,266 reports
- nausea1,225 reports
- dyspnoea984 reports
- arthralgia948 reports
- cough749 reports
- asthenia747 reports
Read these as a signal, not a rate. A report does not mean exemestane caused the effect — anyone can file one, and many describe people taking several medicines for several conditions. Crucially there is no denominator: FAERS does not record how many people took the drug, so these counts cannot be turned into “X% of patients” — a bigger number often just means a more widely used or more talked-about drug. Duplicates exist, and publicity drives reporting. For what is actually established, read the FDA label section above.
Source: openFDA drug/event (FAERS), retrieved August 25, 2026.
Related calculators
Frequently asked questions
What is exemestane?
Aromasin (Exemestane) is an aromatase inhibitor used to treat Breast Neoplasms.
What kind of drug is exemestane?
The FDA classifies exemestane as an aromatase inhibitor. If you are checking whether it is safe to combine with something else, the class is what matters — two drugs from the same class usually should not be stacked.
Can you take exemestane with other medicines?
It depends on the medicine. We check it against the FDA labels rather than guessing: our interaction checker searches each drug's own label for the other and quotes what it says, naming the section it came from. Run exemestane against whatever else you take — and remember that a label not naming a drug is not the same as that combination being safe.
What brand names is exemestane sold under?
We track 2 exemestane-containing products in the U.S.: Exemestane and Aromasin. They are the same active ingredient; they differ in form, manufacturer, price and FDA recall record.
What forms does exemestane come in?
Across the brands we track, exemestane is currently marketed as tablet, per the FDA's National Drug Code Directory. Each form is dosed differently — follow the label for the exact product you were prescribed.
Is there a generic exemestane?
Yes. Our catalog lists 1 generic exemestane product alongside the brand versions. A generic has the same active ingredient and must meet the FDA's bioequivalence standard; it usually costs less. Ask your pharmacist which one your plan covers.
Cite this page
- APA
- pharmaranks. (2026, July 24). Exemestane: uses, dosing, side effects & brands. https://pharmaranks.com/drugs/exemestane
- MLA
- “Exemestane: uses, dosing, side effects & brands.” pharmaranks, 24 July 2026, https://pharmaranks.com/drugs/exemestane.
We summarise public FDA and NIH sources — for a clinical claim, cite the primary source we link to as well.
Sources: FDA openFDA drug label, National Drug Code Directory, and Enforcement (recall) database. This page reproduces public FDA data and is not medical advice. Dosing is set by your prescriber.
Read the full FDA label for exemestane on DailyMed (NIH) ↗.