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08-01-2007, 04:12 PM
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#1
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Member
Join Date: Jul 2007
Posts: 11
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what is the meaning of HER2+
I am confused. My tumor was Her2+, Surgery came back all clear margins and clear nodes. I am doing Herceptin for the rest of my year time. Does this mean I will definitley get cancer again? Do we even know? I was also er+ 90% I am just curious, because everything I read about her2 says it means poor prognosis! ACKKK! If anyone can let me know LOL I would appreciate it.
Thank you
Susan
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08-01-2007, 04:34 PM
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#2
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Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Acworth, GA
Posts: 2,104
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Susan,
Relax. Just because you are HER2+ does not mean your will get a recurrence. There are many women on this board who have never had a recurrence or developed mets.
__________________
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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08-01-2007, 05:51 PM
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#3
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Central Coast, CA
Posts: 3,207
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Hi!
Her2+ means that your tumor has too many copies of the Her2 protein, which is a growth factor causing (duh) growth. In breast cancer, it is associated with rapid growing cancers.
Historically, it WAS associated with poor prognosis because of this. Ignore that, it is OLD news, and the story has changed dramatically. That was before Herceptin and way before adjuvant use of herceptin for early stage cancers.
The availability of herceptin to target the "problem" of Her2+ has turned it around - now some doctors consider it a good prognosis. In the adjuvant trials which led to approval of herceptin for early stage, it showed 50% reduction in the rate of recurrence!
You picked a good time to get this (HA HA), in all likelihood you will leave this behind you for good!
BTW, nobody KNOWS whether anyone will have a recurrence - you just go on and hope!
Hope this helps.
__________________
Chris in Scotts Valley
June 2002 extensive hi grade DCIS (pre-cancer-stage 0, clean sentinal node) Mastectomy/implant - no chemo, rads. "cured?"
9/2004 Diag: Stage IV extensive liver mets (!) ER/PR- Her2+++
10/04-3/05 Weekly Taxol/Carboplatin/Herceptin , complete response!
04/05 - 4/07 Herception every 3 wks, Continue NED
04/07 - recurrence to liver - 2 spots, starting tykerb/avastin trial
06/07 8/07 10/07 Scans show stable, continue on Tykerb/Avastin
01/08 Progression in liver
02/08 Begin (TDM1) trial
08/08 NED! It's Working! Continue on TDM1
02/09 Continue NED
02/10 Continue NED. 5/10 9/10 Scans NED 10/10 Scans NED
12/10 Scans not clear....4/11 Scans suggest progression 6/11 progression confirmed in liver
07/11 - 11/11 Herceptin/Xeloda -not working:(
12/11 Begin MM302 Phase I trial - bust:(
03/12 3rd times the charm? AKT trial
5/12 Scan shows reduction! 7/12 More reduction!!!!
8/12 Whoops...progression...trying for Perjeta/Herceptin (plus some more nasty chemo!)
9/12 Start Perjeta/Herceptin, chemo on hold due to infection/wound in leg, added on cycle 2 &3
11/12 Poops! progression in liver, Stop Perjeta/Taxo/Herc
11/12 Navelbine/Herce[ptin - try for a 3 cycles, no go.
2/13 Gemzar/Carbo/Herceptin - no go.
3/13 TACE procedure
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08-01-2007, 11:56 PM
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#4
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Naples FL
Posts: 1,744
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Hi Susan, If you go to the HOME section of this site, at the bottom you will see lots of links. The one Her2neu gene will give you lots of info on the subject!!! My oncologist told me that Her2+ used to have a poor prognosis, but with the advent of Herceptin, it is a whole new story now!
__________________
 Suzan W.
age 54 at diagnosis
5/05 suspicious mammogram-left breast
5/05 biopsy-invasive lobular carcinoma with LCIS,8mm tumor,stage 1 grade 2, ER+ PR+ Her2+++
6/14/05 bilateral mastectomy, node neg. all scans neg.
Oncotype DX-high risk
8/05-10/05 4 rounds A/C
10/05 -10/06 1 yr. herceptin
arimidex-5 years
2/14/08 started daily self administered injections..FORTEO for severe osteoporosis
7/28/09 BRCA 1 negative BRCA2 POSITIVE
8/17/09 prophylactic salpingo-oophorectomy
10/15/10 last FORTEOinjection
RECLAST infusion(ostoeporosis)
6/14/10 5 year cancerversary!
8/2010-18%increase in bone density!
no further treatments
Oncologist says, "Go do the Happy Dance"
I say,"What a long strange trip its been"
'One day at a time'
6-14-2015. 10 YEAR CANCERVERSARY!
7-16 to 9-16. Extensive (and expensive) dental work done to save teeth. Damage from osteoporosis and chemo and long term bisphosphonate use
6-14-16. 11 YEAR CANCERVERSARY!!
7-20-16 Prolia injection for severe osteoporosis
2 days later, massive hive outbreak. This led to an eventual dx of Chronic Ideopathic Urticaria, an auto-immune disease from HELL.
6-14-17 12 YEAR CANCERVERSARY!!
still suffering from CIU. 4 hospitilizations in the past year
as of today, 10-31-17 in remission from CIU and still, CANCER FREE!!!
6-14-18 13 YEAR CANCERVERSARY!! NED!!
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08-02-2007, 06:10 AM
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#5
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Poland Ohio just a little south of Youngstown.
Posts: 473
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Hi Susan
When I was first diagnosed my surgeon said "The bad news is that you are Her2+++, then he said "The good news is that you're Her2+++" I was confused but he laughed and told me about Herceptin. He said he thanks God for this new drug, it's like a miracle and a major break through in breast cancer studies. He was genuinely excited about it. So, I guess it's not as bad as it was before the use of Herceptin. Thankfully, we have people working to help find new treatments.
Good luck to you and try not to worry to much. (I'm a good one to talk about worrying! LOL)
__________________
Susan
Age: 61
dx: 5/25/06
2 cm/ 0 nodes
Lumpectomy rt breast on 7/26/06
ER/PR- / Her2+++
A/C x 4
finished taxotere 2/07
finished 33 rads
Herceptin finished 12/07/07 Yippee!
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08-02-2007, 09:55 AM
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#6
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: NYC
Posts: 250
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Hi--
Just writing to echo the thoughts expressed already here. It really is a bad news, good news story. It is an aggressive cancer, but the drugs are even more aggressive and with the adjuvent use of Herceptin, the outlook has changed for people like you and me, people who were lucky enough to get Herceptin as part of their treatment for early-stage breast cancer. I was diagnosed just as the study results were released in '05. Basically, anything you read about Her2 that was published before April 2005, ignore. When I'm feeling insecure about my prognosis, and I did have a lot of positive nodes, I read-up on all the new Her2+ drugs that are in the pipeline. There was a well-known onc, (who I think is on the board of this site) who publically said at a major cancer meeting that he thought that Her2+ cancers would be one of the first ones CURED. What a wonderful word.
Time heals a lot of these very natural fears. Wishing you some peace.
My best,
Jen
__________________
dx 4/05 @ 34 y.o.
Stage IIIC, ER+ (90%)/PR+ (95%)/HER2+ (IHC 3+)
lumpectomy-- 2.5 cm 15+/37 nodes
(IVF in between surgery and chemo)
tx dd A/C, followed by dd Taxol & Herceptin
30 rads (or was it 35?)
Finished Herceptin on 7/24/06
Tamox
livingcured.blogspot.com
"Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see the shadow." -- Helen Keller
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