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Thank you girls for your sweet words! I do believe with all my heart that the healing energy I receive from my horses , has been instrumental in my recovery. I told my riding instructor one time, that I never felt more alive than when I was on a horse. She agreed that I definitely had a glow when I was riding and that it must be his energy flowing right into me!
I could go on and on...
And Dearest Andi, I don't know what to tell you about Herceptin and me, only that it has saved my life too. I would love to meet Drs. Slamon and Pegram, and someday I will, and I'll give them a big hug too! I am so thankful for each day and I have to say once again how much I appreciate this incredible website that Christine and Joe envisioned.
I have learned to be much more proactive from all the information I have gathered here, and all the timely advice regarding brain MRIs, I am sure, has helped me avoid more problems. I have been NED for 2 years now, but I don't feel confident enough to ever stop taking my Herceptin.
I will probably be on it forever or at least until that wonderful day they find our cure!
I think the hardest thing I struggle with now, and I hope I am not hurting anyone's feelings, but I guess you'd call it Survivor's guilt. We have lost too many precious ladies on this board. I don't know why Herceptin works so well for some and not for all, but I struggle with this alot. It's really hard for me to talk about with anyone so I just thought I'd bring it up because it is just another aspect of my being on Herceptin, something that's always on my mind.
Sending prayers and hugs to each and everyone of you! Kim
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Diag. Feb 1997 4.5cm IDC <10%ER+, PR-. 5 out of 36 nodes +. Mastectomy followed by 3 rounds Adriamycin/Cytoxin.
5/1997 Hi Dose Chemo w/ Stem cell rescue. Spent 4 weeks in isolation ward. Then 6 weeks radiation.
9/2001 widespread mets to liver. 8 mos Taxotere/Herceptin brought me almost to NED. Stop Taxotere & add Femara .
11/2002 liver resection to remove spot that turned out to be necrosis. Officially NED!
7/2003 Tumor markers rising add Xeloda Disastrous reaction, 8 days hospital, but tumor markers came back to normal!
June -Dec 2004 UW Vaccine Trial.
7/2005 MRI single 11mm brain met
8/2005 Gamma Knife.
Brain MRI @3 months NED!
2006-2011 brain/body still NED
8/04/11 Taking Herceptin break, will monitor with tumor markers.
6/20/12 Tumor markers begin to rise. CA15-3 is 31.3 and Her2 Serum is at 17.1 Decide to repeat in one month.
7/23/12 CA15-3 now 49.3
Her2 Serum 26.8
8/6/12 Back on Herceptin
CA15-3 now 76
Her2 Serum now 49
11/7/12 Add weekly Taxotere for 4 cycles
2/2013 Stopped Taxotere added Perjeta. MRI shows approx. 50% reduction liver mets. CA15-3 still elevated @ 55. Will continue on just Herceptin & Perjeta.
November 2014 Continuing on Herceptin, Perjeta, and
Femara indefinitely. Guess I'm NED again, but watching those tumor markers carefully!
Dec. 2015 PET scan reveals mass in perirectal area of abdomen.biopsy confirms. Still Her2+, but no longer ER+. Bye bye Femara
Jan 2016 Begin Kadcyla
March 2016 PET scan shows tumor now barely visible, still NED everywhere else.
2016/2017 continue Kadcyla
November 2017 brain MRI reveals small focus of T2 hyperintensity with possible 4mm enhancing nodule. Short term follow up MRI suggested. Stay tuned...
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