HER2 Support Group Forums - View Single Post - Tykerb & Her2 signaling pathways explained

bejuce · 06-18-2010, 08:38 PM

You know, as someone who got Tykerb daily for 12 weeks during the 2nd phase of my neo-adjuvant chemo, I'm really glad to have read this article
and to have it confirmed what my oncologist had told me about Tykerb's potential to help with CNS mets when she was trying to convince me to enroll in the trial.

I was deciding between the trial and the MD Anderson protocol
of Herceptin+Taxol and then FEC+Herceptin. I chose the trial so I could get Tykerb and Herceptin, albeit not simultaneously. I did get one loading dose of Herceptin before my surgery, and my giant tumor in the breast disappeared completely.

They were, however, cells left in 11/13 nodes, but they were very small and scattered. I wonder though - based on a recent posting of Herceptin given in a neo-adjuvant setting in the MD Anderson protocol - whether if I had done the MD Anderson protocol I would have ended up with clear nodes. Is Herceptin better than Tykerb at getting the cells in the lymph nodes? Probably doesn't matter that much as I'm getting
a year of it and got radiation as well. I do hope that Tykerb will
become standard of care together (concurrently? sequentially?) soon.

06-18-2010, 08:38 PM	#5
bejuce Senior Member Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 510	Re: Tykerb & Her2 signaling pathways explained You know, as someone who got Tykerb daily for 12 weeks during the 2nd phase of my neo-adjuvant chemo, I'm really glad to have read this article and to have it confirmed what my oncologist had told me about Tykerb's potential to help with CNS mets when she was trying to convince me to enroll in the trial. I was deciding between the trial and the MD Anderson protocol of Herceptin+Taxol and then FEC+Herceptin. I chose the trial so I could get Tykerb and Herceptin, albeit not simultaneously. I did get one loading dose of Herceptin before my surgery, and my giant tumor in the breast disappeared completely. They were, however, cells left in 11/13 nodes, but they were very small and scattered. I wonder though - based on a recent posting of Herceptin given in a neo-adjuvant setting in the MD Anderson protocol - whether if I had done the MD Anderson protocol I would have ended up with clear nodes. Is Herceptin better than Tykerb at getting the cells in the lymph nodes? Probably doesn't matter that much as I'm getting a year of it and got radiation as well. I do hope that Tykerb will become standard of care together (concurrently? sequentially?) soon. __________________ ER+ (30%)/PR-/HER-2+, stage 3 Diagnosed on 02/18/09 at 38 with a huge 12x10 cm tumor, after a 6 month delay. Told I was too young and had no risk factors. Found swollen node during breastfeeding. March-August 09: neo-adjuvant chemo, part of a trial at Stanford (4 DD A/C, 4 Taxotere with daily Tykerb), loading dose of Herceptin 08/12/09 - bye bye boobies (bilateral mastectomy) 08/24/09 - path report shows 100 % success in breast tissue (no cancer there, yay!), 98 % success in lymphatic invasion, and even though 11/13 nodes were still positive, > 95 % of the tumor in them was killed. Hoping for the best! September-October 09: rads with daily Xeloda 02/25/10 - Cholecystectomy 05/27/10 - Bone scan clear 06/14/10 - CT scan clear, ovarian cyst found 07/27/10 - Done with Herceptin! 02/15/11 - MVA-BN HER-2 vaccine trial 03/15/11 - First CA 15-3: 12.7 and normal, yay! 10/01/11 - Bone scan and CT scan clear, fatty liver found now on Tamoxifen and Aspirin