Question for anyone....

[Breezes1]

Hi All....
I just found this board! What a wonderful site!
I was Dx'd with Stage 3 Grade 3 BC w/ 1 node +, also I am HER2+ in Feb of 2005.
I finshed up chemo treatments in June. at that time, I and my Onc. discussed Tamoxifen. And decided against it.
My question is... Being there is such rave reviews about Herceptin... Is it to late for one to go on it, after they have been off chemo treatment as long as I have?
I called and asked my oncology nurse... She said it's to late.. tomorrow, I go the the Dr. And will ask him.... But, i am afraid he'll say the same thing...
Has anyone faced this?

[lexigirl]

From reading other posts I thought ladies were getting the herceptin up to a year after chemo tx. You may be a couple of mos. over but the benefit I would think will still be there. Perhaps because you only had 1 node positive?

Best wishes to you as you meet w/ the Doc. Do stand your ground if you really believeyou should recieve the tx.

Love and Prayers,
Lexi

[Cathya]

Push hard for the herceptin. It is not yet one year since you finished chemo. I am also wondering why you would decide against Tamoxifen if you were ER/PR+. It is another way to fight this beast. I don't know if you are pre or post menapausal but I am post and on arimidex and thank goodness for that as I have just been taken of herceptin temporarily. I guess my view is that you go into a battle with every weapon you can.

Best regards,

Cathya

[Maggie]

I'd go for the Herceptin. You finished chemo June/05. They'll do it for a year after. I started 13 months after, because they wanted a different testing done, too.

Maggie

[Breezes1]

Thanks everyone!
When i go tomorrow to talk to him.. I'll be loaded for bear!
Cathya.... the reason why I opted uot of the Tamoxifen was due, to the fact, that my Onc, & Rads Dr. advided against it.
And at the time.. as we all know, we are new and sort of in shock with all of this.. and I was going with my Dr's recommendation.
I hope now, I didn't make the wrong choice!

[nancymarie]

Breezes,

I was diagnosed back in 2002 and had most of my chemo in the 2002/2003 timeframe. I just started Herceptin in December of last year. I had to push my oncologist for it though.

-Nancy

[karenann]

Hi,

I would push for the Herceptin and I would also go on some type of hormone blocker; either, Tamoxifin or one of the Aromatase Inhibitors.

Karen

[Bev]

Hi Breezes, I'm stage 2 and no nodes on Herceptin. I would push for it if I were you. Check with your insurance company, the cost may influence your decision. Also search this site on late herceptin. There have been many discussions on this subject. Best wishes, BB

Hi Breezes-
I started herceptin 5 years after I stopped chemo. Now I am on herceptin and xeloda and my last catscan showed NED. By all means, go for it! (Lots of prayer too, of course!) God Bless-Cathy W

[Breezes1]

Thanks for all the advice..
I went to my today...
and got no where.
He said, that there is no conclusive study, saying that Herceptin, after the fact will help.. My arguement, is that it " can't hurt either" So.. we are on a stand off on that.
Next problem is insurance. I was on the medicaid program, and they cancelled me... They claim, they only cover " chemo. rads, and the 5 years on Tomoxifen. If you're not on the Tomoxifen... they cancel you.
So..Until i get the insurance re-instated... I am screwed.
Also.. I told him, about my arm, I have been having problems with it for 2 months, as far as ROM. it started in my upper arm & shoulder , but the pain now is going past the elbow.
I went to the ER the other morning, thinking that with the arm pain, and then it went into my shoulder and frontal chest area, I thought it was a heart attack, being, it hurts when I breath.. It turned out to be an en-flamed chest wall.
but.. it still doesn't explaine the arm pain.. so, in for a scan we go.
I would rather be safe than sorry. Also i am going Weds. for a stress test.
I wish i would hurry up and win the lottery! LOL

[Cathya]

You could always go for a clinical trial. There are lots of links on this site to them. Go to the homepage and under Resources you will find links. There are also many posted in the Clinical Trials pages. Did you find out if you are ER/PR positive or negative?

Best regards,

Cathya

[Breezes1]

Thanks Cathya... ( what a cool name! )
He said I was HER2+ But... Just barely. What ever that is supposed to mean
.

[kk1]

Any ER+ her2+ person should read carefully the research on tamoxifen resistance and her2. You can do a search on this site and find alot of information/discussion. After doing extensive reading I would not be on tamoxifen without also being on herceptin, as blocking the estrogen receptor with tamox seems to cause the sneaky cancer cell to upregulate the her2 receptor activity. Recent studies suggests that we need to block both sites at the same time to be effective long term. IMHO

kk1

[AlaskaAngel]

Why IS it that the only way we find out about the conflict between tamoxifen and HER2 is from each other or by our own intensive research....?!

I talked with another onc and mentioned that I do not understand why I was ever put on tamoxifen as a HER2.... (which is one of the best tests for finding out how much smoke gets blown my way)... Answer: "no one knew very much about it until quite recently"... (on an honesty scale of 1 to 10 that rates maybe a 2)...

Make up your own mind. If you are HER2 positive and considering tamoxifen, google AIB1 and tamoxifen and maybe HER2 and see for yourself.

AlaskaAngel

[sadie]

This site gives interesting update on Herceptin use;
A little complicated to read, but if you bypass some of the clinical "lingo", you can gain some insight on the latest stats of Herceptin success at both beginning of chemo and adjuvent.
Sadie


http://clinicaloptions.com/layouts/C...2-E964EA6098A0}