[phil]

T DM-1 deserves all the hype its getting, despite Greg P.s' persistent skepticism. Genentech has offerd ot to all pts in EMILIA who got tykerb/xeloda. That tells you something right there. When dealing w/ a her2 cancer that progresses on herceptin, thats extra aggressive -aggressive tx is needed. Tykerb/ xeloda is very often intolerable because of nasty s/e -hand/foot syndrome, g.i. distress and related wt loss. I havent heard of it being prescribed by itself very often, i know it didnt hold Lorraines cancer back more than 6 months or so. And that was w/ xeloda. Have heard of dozens of t dm-1 pts with 1-2 yrs , some 3 + and counting.
In EMILIA i believe 65% of the pts who got t dm-1 were still alive after 2 yrs.
I think t dm-1 will largely supplant tykerb in tx of aggressive, high overexpressed her2 cancer, for a few yrs, until something better comes along. Tyk.'s ability to cross bbb is important, for those whose cancer goes that way. Lorraines goes to her liver area. I am hoping tdm-1 keeps it from going any where else, shes ned on scans since last Nov., 22 months all told so far, and shes far from the only one reporting yrs of stability. The QOL is un-believable, tyk/xel one of the worst for s/e of the 7 or so tx combos she tried.