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Caroline UK · 06-01-2007, 03:13 AM

Hi Adriana,

I'm over halfway through my year of Herceptin. I had a baseline echo done prior to starting, then one 3-monthly. My ejection fraction went down to 55% one time, and so I had another echo two, rather than three, months later. It showed that my EF had gone up to 58%, and I'm back on 3-monthly now.

My understanding is that it should be in the range of 50 - 70%, and if it goes below 50%, Herceptin is stopped. The heart recovers, hopefully, either alone or with medication help, and then, depending on your heart function, you can continue with the rest of your Herceptin. This is what I've learned, from my hospital, and from here!

06-01-2007, 03:13 AM	#12
Caroline UK Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: London, England Posts: 96	Hi Adriana, I'm over halfway through my year of Herceptin. I had a baseline echo done prior to starting, then one 3-monthly. My ejection fraction went down to 55% one time, and so I had another echo two, rather than three, months later. It showed that my EF had gone up to 58%, and I'm back on 3-monthly now. My understanding is that it should be in the range of 50 - 70%, and if it goes below 50%, Herceptin is stopped. The heart recovers, hopefully, either alone or with medication help, and then, depending on your heart function, you can continue with the rest of your Herceptin. This is what I've learned, from my hospital, and from here! __________________ Caroline Diag. March 10th 2006, aged 46. Invasive ductal carcinoma, 2cm + multifocal. Stage 2, Grade 3 HER2+++, ER+/PR+ Right mast. May 2006. 6 of 20 nodes positive FEC x 4, taxotere x 4; port implanted after 6 cycles Rads x 25 1 year of Herceptin ended Nov 07. Arimidex 5 years Considering reconstruction, maybe soon...