Liver mets ladies...I have questions!
 

Hi Ladies...

I am saddened to be posting here but hopefully you can provide me a better outlook on what will go on with my mom. She was diagnosed with BC in July 2005, had a mastectomy in August with 11/20 nodes positive. She was ER/PR - and HER2+++. She did chemo and radiation for 6 months and had negative test results at each checkup. The last one being in November 2007 where everything came back normal. However, in late Jan., she started feeling more tired than usual and was dealing with constant nausea. We finally too her to the ER since she appeared mildly yellow and it came back that she has mets on her liver. (they haven't told us how many yet). They first scared us to death by saying that she had pancreatic cancer with liver mets but the area near her pancreas turned out to be a swollen lymph node. So now we're dealing with liver mets and at least one affected node. Has anyone else had nodes effected or had symptoms of nausea/jaundice when they were diagnosed?

She is going to her oncologist next week to talk about what treatment she will receive. Anyway, when she called her original oncologist to tell him about the spots ( we took her to the closest emergency room, not the hospital her oncologist is at), he said they may or may not do a liver biopsy depending on what they can tell from the ultrasound. Will she be treated based on the ER/PR/HER2 status of her original breast cancer or do the spots on her liver have a different ER/PR/HER2 status?

I am looking for any guidance you can provide - thanks ladies!

Your mom can still treat this and get it to turn around. Often when bc mets responds to treatment, it responds really well.

In Jan 2004, when I was diagnosed with liver mets, my liver was shutting down, it was completely covered in tumors, my skin was school bus yellow before the treatment took effect. Even the whites of my eyes were yellow.

Herceptin/Navelbine/Xeloda kicked the liver mets back. My onc put me on a combo because he was not sure we would get another chance to treat if the first treatment did not work. I was just that close to the brink.

I did not have a liver biopsy, just started treatment. So I don't know about the biopsy issue, but I think it is not always necessary.

Good luck with your mom's treaments!

Why it might be a good idea to biopsy the liver
 

as occasionally the ER and/or her2 status are different between the primary tumor and the metastasis (sometimes they find there is a second primary breast cancer or that the liver involvement is from something else--let's not even go there in your worry cycle, but as it is happens, although unlikely, and if it does it is good to know in order to be sure she gets the best treatment)

I a not an oncologist or nurse--I post the above as it based on my reading of the literature and what I have heard oncologists and cancer researchers lecture on at conferences.

Hope this helps

Hi Mona! I echo what both Esther and Lani have stated. Also, there are many women on this site who have beaten back liver mets for years and even eradicated them. There are many, many new chemo. drugs that have been developed and approved over the last few years, and even more in clinical studies. Please don't despair. You have come to the right place for information and support, just please keep us posted and updated whenever you can. Wish I could help more. You and your Mom will be in my prayers, Bill

Hi Mona,

You said your mom was HER2+, did she get Herceptin?

WIshing you and your mom good wishes...

TRS

Thanks ladies for all the responses. We're all being positive and she's a fighter so we're sure she can battle against this new problem. Yes, with her original treatment 2 years ago, she did get Herceptin, I think for about 3 months. I've heard good things about it being helpful in treating liver mets so I'm hoping she can get it again this time.

About liver biopsy personally I refused to do one because this is a rather intrusive intervention, much more than it was for the breast. Furthermore, although unlikely, it can actually spread cancer along the path of the needle. I weighted that against what new info I could potentially get out of it and it did not seem worth it but I could be wrong:
http://www.abstracts2view.com/sabcs/...=SABCS07L_1168


Good luck, have hope.