[Mtngrl]

Tiffany--

I heard somewhere that HER2 status doesn't usually change over time. But since it had been four years since I had a biopsy, my doctor wanted to be sure.

"Stable" is just as good as NED, in my opinion. Better, actually. There's less emotional turmoil for me changing from "stable" to "progression" than going from NED to progression.

I think NED is a bit of a mirage. In trials, they use "progression free survival" as a surrogate for "overall survival," but it's not really a reliable indicator. I can hack having detectable cancer in my body if it's relatively well behaved and isn't getting in my way too much. In fact, I can hack it even with some impairment and reduced quality of life. As they say, "It beats the alternative."

Amy