a year of chemo?

[charlotte]

Hi all:

first thanks for the advice that was given a few weeks ago....

I had a mastectomy and am trying to rest for a few weeks...

My question is this.... The Onc. Dr. wants to give me chemo A/C for a solid year.. then to be followed is 37 treatments of radiation...does this seem reasonable??.

The tumor that was removed was 5.5 cm...

I am still trying to process all of this as I still have the last mammogram and ultrasound in my hands and it basically says ok.. this was 2 months ago...

again I am er/pr neg

He says that any type of hormone therapy would not be helpful..

so, do I trust him or get a second opinion??

thanks,
charlotte

[karenann]

Are you sure it's a year of AC? Maybe he wants to give you dose dense ACx4 and Tx4, with Herceptin and then a year of Herceptin alone.

Karen

[charlotte]

Yes, I am pretty sure of just A/C.. I am over 2 years out since the first surgery, this is either a recurrence or a new primary.??..don't know just yet,,so I don't think I am a candiate for herception....
The only 2 drugs he talked about was A/ C....

This seems like a bit much for me...

thanks for your reply,

Charlotte

[Julie2]

I don't think anybody will give a year of AC, it is a very toxic chemo. Usually people get for less than 2 months. Please make sure that is what it is and get a second opinion.

[karenann]

Charlotte,

You should get a second opinion because as Julie said in her post, AC is a very toxic drug and typically it is only given for a short time. Also, if this is a recurrence, or a new primary and you are Her2+++, then you can use herceptin.

Karen

[madubois63]

I have to agree!! A year of AC is just unheard of. I had 4 treatments of AC given every two weeks followed by 4 weeks of Taxol. I was told I have reached my LIFETIME LIMIT of Adriomycin.

Lifetime limit
Some drugs used in various chemotherapy regimens have a lifetime limit due to their cumulative toxic effects. It is important to understand that it is the individual drug, not the entire chemotherapy regimen that has a lifetime limit. With respect to lymphoma the biggest example of all is CHOP. Many people mistakenly believe that there is a lifetime limit of CHOP that you can have (often quoted as 8 cycles) This just is not true. What is true is that the Doxorubicin in CHOP (the H) does have a lifetime limit. If you eliminate the Doxorubicin from CHOP, what remains is (CVP) which has no lifetime limit. The list of the most commonly used anthracyclines is:

Doxorubicin
Epirubicin
Idarubicin
Daunorubicin
Mitoxantrone
respinomycin (leukaemia)
Annamycin (leukaemia)

The definition of Anthracyclines is:

Anthracycline: A member of a family of chemotherapy drugs that are also antibiotics. The anthracyclines act to prevent cell division by disrupting the structure of the DNA and terminate its function. They do so in two ways: (1) they intercalate into the base pairs in the DNA minor grooves; and (2) they cause free radical damage of the ribose in the DNA. The anthracyclines are frequently used in leukemia therapy.

These drugs have a risk of cardiac toxicity. Primarily cardiomyopathy (http://cancerweb.ncl.ac.uk/cgi-bin/omd?query=cardiomyopathy) and congestive heart failure (http://cancerweb.ncl.ac.uk/cgi-bin/omd?query=congestive+heart+failure).

..·´¨¨)) -:¦:-
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((¸¸.·´ ¸.·´ -:¦:- -:¦:-
-:¦:- ((¸¸.Maryann -:¦:-´´

[LovingDaughter]

I absolutely agree with the rest of the posts. I have never read about anyone taking AC for an entire year, and I have read many articles similar to the one that Maryann posted that state that Adriamycin has a lifetime limit.

Definitely get a second opinion. I would also call the doctor just to clarify that he was talking about a year of Adriamycin.

[Roz]

I had chemo for 8 months, 4 a/c and 4 Taxol at 3 weekly intervals, but interspersed with 36 radiations. My tumour was 7cm and they gave me three A/cs before surgery. Then one after surgery, rads then Taxol. Unless he is including some herceptin there, it can't be for a year.

[suzan w]

I have to add my 2 cents worth about the A/C...I had 4 out of a recommended 6 treatments...too many side effects. A year of A/C sounds dangerous!