Re: Why do I read posts saying hercept not working
 

Yes, I think Linn65 that you should search through the posts. There has been discussion on the board about foods to eat with the ER+ status, and those to avoid. Lowfat, avoid sugar, and processed foods, pesticides, etc.

My doctor of physical therapy wanted me to exercise at a certain level. He was a specialist in cancer patients, and a study came out that showed a significant decrease in recurrent rates for patients that were at a 10 MET level. Likely because it affects ligands.

SoCalGirl is right, you need to take a holistic look to find all your tools. We've been focusing only on Western medicine.

Re: Why do I read posts saying hercept not working
 

SoCalgal, I have as far as I know have done everything treatment wise. Diet I am eating alot more fruit. :). Exercise uhm I have sucked at that. I have just started feeling better physically with bumps in the road....well, some pot holes. My Dad having a heart attack this month then ended up having open heart, and I didn't know if he would be around today has been a battle I wasn't expecting. However, after three weeks in hospital and now in a program at the nursing home called Bounce Back he is doing amazingly better.

Now, I have been working at understanding what HER2 is and how far they have come in Research. Knowledge is power, and I enjoy learning.

I am working towards progress in all aspects of life, and I can tell you are a pretty funny lady on my other post....make a list of bad things about ex! Lol. I did that and I just forgot for a little bit!

Definitely, interested in the holistic approach. ;). But man I hate exercising. I could use a personal trainer to whip my butt in shape.

Re: Why do I read posts saying hercept not working
 

Lani is right. Sometimes the doctor hits upon something that kills all the weeds (cancer cells). Other times, the cancer cells develop a resistance to the medicine and grow out. The previous methods were to wait for the patient to note something was wrong in an area besides the breast. Now the technology is to know which areas to look at that are likely to have first indications of a problem and treat the whole body or those specific areas as determined by protocol. The past showed no method to get rid of the disease in many areas, and that is changing. The goal is to get the disease as a capsule in the breast, but if there is a genetic issue that causes cancer to more easily occur then the BC woman must address this with her doctor. I agree with Lani in that bone marrow is a likely hiding spot for cancer cells. That is where stem cells form and these cells are the ones that also have the highest chance of being a cancer seed. The brain is not treated by some methods due to the blood brain barrier. Getting medicine into bones is difficult. If there is mucous (lungs and colon) that can also make it difficult for the drug to get to cancer cells. The idea behind vaccines is that these are able to note the cancer cells in all areas of the body. The current vaccines are still not the solution today, but may be tomorrow.
Do not give up hope in a treatment for the group or yourself. Sometimes there is a "hero" that comes along and saves the princess. Sometimes the dragon never comes. Hope for the second and may the first happen for you if you need it.
Paul

Re: Why do I read posts saying hercept not working
 

I have said herceptin doesn't work for me, but it's shortcut for saying that my tumors have progressed on it. The truth is, we don't know if it has worked or not because we don't know what my tumors would have done without it. I've been on herceptin since I was diagnosed with cancer and never stopped.

Without herceptin, maybe I'd be dead already. But it has not arrested the cancer like it does with some.

You can't prove a negative and this is why we don't use anecdotal or single person experiences to base medical treatment on.

So herceptin doesn't work......or does it? Who knows? :)