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10-08-2007, 07:05 PM
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#1
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Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2007
Posts: 108
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Did Time magazine get it wrong??
OK, maybe my poor chemo-addled brain is not absorbing this correctly and maybe you all can help me understand, but it seems to me that Time magazine, which I normally feel pretty confident in, has made a fairly substantial mistake regarding Herceptin in an article on bc.
The October 16th Time has a cover story on BC spreading around the world. I read the not very in-depth article and was surprised by the following sentence at the bottom of page 38 in referece to ER+ cancer ...
"Since the cancer relies on estrogen to grow, drugs like taxmoxifen and Herceptin, which block hormone receptors on malignant cells, can help starve the disease".
Did they totally miss the boat on this one? And (probably more important) am I overreacting? This seems like a pretty big mistake in a national publication.
__________________
Age 50, premenopausal
Dx 1/2/07 DCIS/IDC
Lumpectomy 1/4/07 1.1cm tumor
SNB 3 nodes clear
Stage 1, Grade 2, HER2+++ (FISH 6.8)
ER + / PR +
TCH, 6 rounds, finished 6/1/07!!!
Herceptin to continue for 1 year
36 rads finished 8/22/07
Port out 8/27/07
Switched to Herceptin weekly for joint pain
Ooph 11/13/07
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10-08-2007, 07:19 PM
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#2
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Stockton, NJ
Posts: 4,179
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The media misquotes and screws up information all the time. This is just one big mistake - especially for newly diagnosed women who really don't know anything yet. Some women reading that who are ER+ but Her2 neg will want their Herceptin because Time Magazine said it was so!
Oh well, you got it right that this was wrong.
__________________
Kind regards
Becky
Found lump via BSE
Diagnosed 8/04 at age 45
1.9cm tumor, ER+PR-, Her2 3+(rt side)
2 micromets to sentinel node
Stage 2A
left 3mm DCIS - low grade ER+PR+Her2 neg
lumpectomies 9/7/04
4DD AC followed by 4 DD taxol
Used Leukine instead of Neulasta
35 rads on right side only
4/05 started Tamoxifen
Started Herceptin 4 months after last Taxol due to
trial results and 2005 ASCO meeting & recommendations
Oophorectomy 8/05
Started Arimidex 9/05
Finished Herceptin (16 months) 9/06
Arimidex Only
Prolia every 6 months for osteopenia
NED 18 years!
Said Christopher Robin to Pooh: "You must remember this: You're braver than you believe and stronger than you seem and smarter than you think"
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10-08-2007, 07:29 PM
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#3
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Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2007
Posts: 108
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Becky, thanks for confirming for me. You have such a vast knowledge base regarding BC - I always read your posts with interest!
I think I am going to write Time a letter.
Thanks
__________________
Age 50, premenopausal
Dx 1/2/07 DCIS/IDC
Lumpectomy 1/4/07 1.1cm tumor
SNB 3 nodes clear
Stage 1, Grade 2, HER2+++ (FISH 6.8)
ER + / PR +
TCH, 6 rounds, finished 6/1/07!!!
Herceptin to continue for 1 year
36 rads finished 8/22/07
Port out 8/27/07
Switched to Herceptin weekly for joint pain
Ooph 11/13/07
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10-08-2007, 07:35 PM
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#4
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Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2005
Posts: 3,519
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They got it wrong, no surprise. I try not to rely on Time/Newsweek, etc anymore as real news mags, especially when it comes to medical reporting...
__________________
Brenda
NOV 2012 - 9 yr anniversary
JULY 2012 - 7 yr anniversary stage IV (of 50...)
Nov'03~ dX stage 2B
Dec'03~ Rt side mastectomy, Her2+, ER/PR+, 10 nodes out, one node positive
Jan'04~ Taxotere/Adria/Cytoxan x 6, NED, no Rads, Tamox. 1 year, Arimadex 3 mo., NED 14 mo.
Sept'05~ micro mets lungs/chest nodes/underarm node, Switched to Aromasin, T/C/H x 7, NED 6 months - Herceptin only
Aug'06~ micro mets chest nodes, & bone spot @ C3 neck, Added Taxol to Herceptin
Feb'07~ Genetic testing, BRCA 1&2 neg
Apr'07~ MRI - two 9mm brain mets & 5 punctates, new left chest met, & small increase of bone spot C3 neck, Stopped Aromasin
May'07~ Started Tykerb/Xeloda, no WBR for now
June'07~ MRI - stable brain mets, no new mets, 9mm spots less enhanced, CA15.3 down 45.5 to 9.3 in 10 wks, Ty/Xel working magic!
Aug'07~ MRI - brain mets shrunk half, NO NEW BRAIN METS!!, TMs stable @ 9.2
Oct'07~ PET/CT & MRI show NED
Apr'08~ scans still show NED in the head, small bone spot on right iliac crest (rear pelvic bone)
Sept'08~ MRI shows activity in brain mets, completed 5 fractions/5 consecutive days of IMRT to zap the pesky buggers
Oct'08~ dropped Xeloda, switched to tri-weekly Herceptin in combo with Tykerb, extend to tri-monthly Zometa infusion
Dec'08~ Brain MRI- 4 spots reduced to punctate size, large spot shrunk by 3mm, CT of torso clear/pelvis spot stable
June'09~ new 3-4mm left cerrebellar spot zapped with IMRT targeted rads
Sept'09~ new 6mm & 1 cm spots in pituitary/optic chiasm area. Rx= 25 days of 3D conformal fractionated targeted IMRT to the tumors.
Oct'09~ 25 days of low dose 3D conformal fractionated targeted IMRT to the bone mets spot on rt. iliac crest that have been watching for 2 years. Added daily Aromasin back into treatment regimen.
Apr'10~ Brain MRI clear! But, see new small spot on adrenal gland. Change from Aromasin back to Tamoxifen.
June'10~ Tumor markers (CA15.3) dropped from 37 to 23 after one month on Tamoxifen. Continue to monitor adrenal gland spot. Remain on Tykerb/Herceptin/Tamoxifen.
Nov'10~ Radiate positive mediastinal node that was pressing on recurrent laryngeal nerve, causing paralyzed larynx and a funny voice.
Jan'11~ MRI shows possible activity or perhaps just scar tissue/necrotic increase on 3 previously treated brain spots and a pituitary spot. 5 days of IMRT on 4 spots.
Feb'11~ Enrolled in T-DM1 EAP in Denver, first treatment March 25, 2011.
Mar'11~ Finally started T-DM1 EAP in Denver at Rocky Mountain Cancer Center/Rose on Mar. 25... hallelujah.
"I would rather be anecdotally alive than statistically dead."
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10-08-2007, 08:40 PM
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#5
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Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Acworth, GA
Posts: 2,104
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That's a very serious mistake they made in printing. I would think they should be made to make a correction. That could pose a major problem especially for newly diagnosed women.
__________________
Kate
Stage IIIC Diagnosed Oct 25, 2005 (age 58)
ER/PR-, HER2+++, grade 3, Ploidy/DNA index: Aneuploid/1.61, S-phase: 24.2%
Neoadjunct chemo: 4 A/C; 4 Taxatore
Bilateral mastectomy June 8, 2006
14 of 26 nodes positive
Herceptin June 22, 2006 - April 20, 2007
Radiation (X35) July 24-September 11, 2006
BRCA1/BRCA2 negative
Stage IV lung mets July 13, 2007 - TCH
Single brain met - August 6, 2007 -CyberKnife
Oct 2007 - clear brain MRI and lung mets shrinking.
March 2008 lung met progression, brain still clear - begin Tykerb/Xeloda/Ixempra
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10-09-2007, 12:45 AM
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#6
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: San Antonio, TX
Posts: 2,357
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Maybe they could repent by doing a major story (about 10 pages!!!) next month to redeem themselves! Oh, yea, and send it to some "real" experts to be checked before publishing! Maybe the editor is on chemo!
__________________
MA in TX.
Grateful for each and every day....
Diag. 12/05 at age 60
Stage II, Grade 3, 4.5 cm primary tumor
ER/PR- Her2 +3 strongly positive
Her2 by FISH 7.7 amplified
vascular invasion
Ki67 20% borderline
Jan - March '06 Taxotere/Adriamycin X 3 to try to shrink tumor - it grew
April '06 Rt Modified Radical Mas, 7 of 9 nodes positive
April - Aug. '06 Herceptin/Taxol/Carboplatin X 8 (dose dense)
Sept - Dec. '06 Navelbine/Herceptin x 8 (dose dense)
Radiation & Herceptin Jan. 22 - March 1, 2007
Finished Herceptin Dec. 10 '08! One extra year.
Port removed August, 2012.
8 1/2 years since diagnosis! 5 1/2 Years NED!
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10-09-2007, 02:57 AM
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#7
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Grand Rapids, MI
Posts: 1,516
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Erin...
I READ it too AND said the same thing. I used to be a proofreader so I know that THEY are not at error as they don't look for context.
Rhonda
__________________
Rhonda
Dx 2/1/05, Stage 1, 0 nodes, Grade 3, ER/PR-, HER2+ (3.16 Fish)
2/7/05, Partial Mastectomy
5/18/05 Finished 6 rounds of dose dense TEC (Taxotere, Epirubicin and Cytoxan)
8/1/05 Finished 33 rads
8/18/05 Started Herceptin, every 3 weeks for a year (last one 8/10/06)
2/1/13...8 year Cancerversary and I am "perfect" (at least where cancer is concerned;)
" And in the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years."- Abraham Lincoln
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10-09-2007, 06:40 AM
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#8
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Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Wilmington, Del.
Posts: 1,126
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I agree that this is a serious mistake because it's so easy to confuse information. For example, a few weeks ago, I was talking to a Her2 pos. friend of mine who went through treatment with me, and I realized that she had confused Her2 with being Estrogen Positive. She actually said "when you're her2 positive your tumor is sensitive to estrogen." Maybe she's confused because the oncologist told her that although she's finished with Herceptin, she is still in treatment because she is taking Arimidex. Perhaps she thinks the Arimidex is treating Her2. I tried to gently give her some information but she got agitated and I backed off.
__________________
MJO
IDC, Stage I, Grade 2
Oncotype DX Score 32
Her2++ E+P+, Node Neg.
Lumpectomy 11/04/05 Clear Margins
3 Dose dense AC (Couldn't tolerate 4)
4 Dose dense Taxol & Herc. (Tolerated well)
36 weeks Herceptin (Could not complete one year due to decrease in MUGA score)
2 years of Arimidex, then three years of Femara
Finished Femara May 2011
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