|
Second opinions and third!!!! This seems to be a radical opinion and and I think he/she is premature to be predicting your death. It looks like you have just started on the herceptin recently and there are a lot of other cancer treatments available. You hang in there and keep looking. Stage four is not a death sentence and 18 months is based on old statitstics, anyway. And you are right, pain meds do muddy your thoughts. Keep on with the treatments and look for options when your head clears. I cannot imagine a doctor scheduling major surgery while you are just beginning treatment. Please, please get second opinions.
Leslie
__________________
In the world of destiny, there are no statistics.
Jan. 26- mammogram and ultrasound- suspicious lump
Mid-February- lumpectomy, infiltrating ductal carcinoma ~4.5 cm and a 1 cm DCIS, did not get clear margins, did not check lymph nodes
ER+/PR+, her2 +++, nuclear grade 3 of 3
February 20-PET scan showed something on liver. No biopsy.
March- Started carboplatin, herceptin, taxol on a four week cycle
May 3- Pet scan, with intent to do a biopsy, found nothing, liver or breast- no biopsy because there is nothing to biopsy
June 21- new onc, very concerned that there had been no biopsy,
June 18th-CAT scan, bone scan-negative
August 7th - Brain MRI-negative
August 9th- mastectomy, all pathology negative
January 2008 still NED! New oncologist -herceptin for full year after chemo- until July, and tamoxifen---negative scans since May '07
July 2008-Finished Herceptin!
|