kat in the Delta
 

How many Her2+ women had metast. within 2-5 yrs, after finding thier original breast cancer, and where did it first appear?? Also, has herceptin helped stop it from developing furthur metast. ?? Kat

Kat,

I was originally diagnosed in Feb. of 1997 and had recurrence in June of 2001, so didn't quite make the 5 yr. mark. My recurrence was to my liver, multiple mets with partial blockage of the main blood vessel(portal vein I think) in the liver. I did 8 months of Taxotere and Herceptin, followed by resection of the left lobe of my liver just to make sure we got it all. Turns out the pathology showed there was no cancer in the left lobe, just scar tissue. I have been on maintenance Herceptin ever since. I also participated in the UW vaccine trial. I had a single brain met last summer that was successfully treated with Gamma Knife and have been NED so far.

Kim in CA

Kat,

I was originally diagnosed in Sept. 2003 and my recurrence was to my left & right lungs with multiple lesions occurred 7 months after completing neoadjuvant chemo, surgery, radiation and one year of herceptin. I have been on Xeloda for the past 4 months and my disease has just started to progress slightly. I am in the process of going through eligibility requirements for a new trial at NCI using a double monoclonal antibody - Herceptin and Pertuzumab. I will hopefully have my first infusion by the end of this month.

Lori S.