Pulled off Herceptin

[Joan]

A couple of weeks ago I started to experience shortness of breath and some chest and throat spasms, feelings like my breath was temporarily shut off, almost like I was going to sneeze or hiccup.

This week the symptoms of shortness of breath got worse and it seemed like a respiratory infection – like feathers stuffed down my chest with some crackling sounds and a little minor wheezing at night.

Yesterday, I took a MUGA, test and it came back with a score of 31 and mentioned damage to the left ventricle. The EKG came back as 'non specific T wave abnormality'. They lost the chest and lung x-rays(?) To-day, the oncologist told me that I would never get Herceptin again. I asked if the heart function came back up, would I then be put back on Herceptin and he answered ‘never’.

During chemo, which finished in October/05 I took epirubicin and cyclophosphamide which are both known to potentially cause heart trouble – I guess Herceptin added to the equation delivered the final blow to my heart. I had three infusions of Herceptin, each given 3 weeks apart.

I am feeling very weak and fatigued and can hardly walk up a flight of stairs and I can’t believe that these symptoms came on so quickly. My MUGA test at the end of the chemo in Oct/05 was 63 – yesterday it was 31.

To anyone out there who is, or who has taken the same combination of chemo drugs and is now on Herceptin, please be careful and make sure your heart function is very closely monitored.

I am soooo disappointed that I can’t have Herceptin. I was diagnosed er-pr-her2+ with a Grade 3, 2.8 cm tumor, had a lumpectomy in March 05 and was sailing along until these last two weeks – it feels pretty rotten. I now feel like a sitting duck.

Joan