Chest Pain

[brittd]

Hello everyone!

I have a question about chest pain and coughing. My Mom is being treated for liver mets with taxol/carbo/herceptin. She has been doing great and her tumor continues to shrink.

However, she has a persistent pain in the center of her chest and a spot on her back that she swears makes her cough all the time. She has told her oncologists about the coughing and pain at every visit but they never make much of it. She just has her scans and chest x-rays and all was clear. I read on another board that a lady had the same symtoms from internal mammary lymph nodes being enlarged with mets. Would a ct scan and x-ray pick this up? Has anyone had any experience with this before? Any suggestions on what tests to request?? Mom does not think it is related to her cancer. I'm just not so sure.

Very concerned daughter,
Brittany

[Lisa]

You have every right to be concerned. It's easy, of course, for all of us to think anything now is cancer. But these are persistent symptoms. I would insist on a CT and/or lung x-ray. There's no reason to keep worrying.

Love and light,

Lisa

[*_Penny_*]

Brittany-
I know what it's like being a concerned daughter. I agree with Lisa to get the chest x-ray and CT scan if she hasn't had them. Have they given her a Muga Scan since she started Herceptin? Herceptin can cause damage to the heart muscle and that did happen with my mom. She had to take a break from it for a while, but her heart did recover and she was able to take the Herceptin again. I'll be praying for you and your mom.
Love, Penny

[Lolly]

I would ask for a PET scan if the CT and chest x-ray are inconclusive, given she is having such persistant symptoms. Also, either an Echocardiogram (less invasive as it's just an ultrasound to check heart valve function) or MUGA (involves an injection of radioactive tracer) to determing heart function is a must, as the coughing and pain could be related to heart problems from Herceptin. As Penny says, the heart usually recovers after a break and then Herceptin can be resumed...Keep us posted!

Love, Lolly