Been There...

Martin,

First, I also welcome you and your family to this board, and I express sorrow that you have the need to be here. I also salute you for being proactive early in your wife’s treatment. Too often a cancer diagnosis is met with dumb obedience. When my wife was diagnosed we had no idea that there were decisions to make other than the ones the oncologist suggested. Your wife’s dx. and tx is similar to my wife’s.

Cyndi had a very small tumor, surgeon thought it benign from visual exam. But.... After second surgery to obtain clear margins, lymph node (all clear) and time to heal, Cyndi started A/C followed by 30 rads. Cyndi was considered cancer free for just over four years, then quite by accident, multiple tumors were found in both lungs. She had been having great check-ups and we were looking forward to the “magic fifth year.�

My point with all of this is: It is possible that your onc. is right, perhaps your wife is not a good candidate for Herceptin at this time. A/C is a little rough when given on the once every three week schedule, you might suggest the “dose dense� every week schedule, it is a little less harsh. Perhaps the blood counts won’t drop as low. The important thing is to keep up with all the developments and HER2 advancements and stay open to participating in the trial of her choice. Herceptin was not an option for Cyndi four years ago, perhaps not even as a trial, in fact, we had not heard of it until mets. At stage IV she is eligible for a lot of things, most are not that appealing. Cyndi has tried to take Herceptin with both Taxotere and Taxol since August 2003. Pleural effusions have caused her to be removed until after chemo is finished, then we will try again.

Keep checking, this and other sites if you are unable to get the Herceptin now. Be absolutely certain that aggressive tests are performed on a regular basis! Do not rely solely on mammography and manual breast exams to find anything new. >From this site, you can readily tell that HER2 does not generally come back to a breast. It seems to me that most recurrence is to bone, brain, liver, and lung. Some wonderful new medications (possibly even a vaccine) are just ahead. HER2 may not be conquered in the near future but I believe it will be controlled.

When Cyndi was still in the hospital after her second surgery to assure clear margins, a friend came in and told her the craziest thing we could have ever imagined. She said, “You will get more out of cancer than cancer will get out of you.� But you know something, she was right; we now treasure each other and our family more each day. For Thirty three years (at that time 1999) I knew I loved Cyndi but now I know just how precious she really is…

God bless you, your wife, and your family during this trying time. Thank you for the support you are and will continue to give to your beautiful wife. Ya’ll are in my prayers.

ron