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Re: AIs and depression
I read a lot this weekend about endocrine therapy. How the drop out rate due to side effects is at least 20%. How patients treated with taxol chemo (like me) are 4 times as likely to have severe arthritic side effects (like me). How women on AIs had more cognitive problems than those on Tamoxifen. Etc., etc. What I did not find was how much endocrine therapy would cut my recurrence rate. When I had the surgery, it was explained to me that I had a 40% rate of recurrence without chemo and radiation, but that with those I reduced that rate to 10%. How much does endocrine therapy further reduce that rate? To 5%? To 2%? Before I put myself through another trial with Femarra or Tamoxifen I would sure like to know exactly what the benefit is. There was a lot of talk about efficacy, but nothing about the numbers. Does anyone know about the numbers?
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Routine mammo 1/8/10
Ultrasound 1/22/10
Biopsy 2/2/10 - IDC, 2 cm, ER+, PR+, HER2 3+, Grade 3 (8/9)
Liver MRI (for other reason) on 2/12/10 clear - no mets
PET scan 3/5/10 - arm pit lymph nodes "lit up", no other areas of concern other than breast tumor
Lumpectomy 3/10 - tumor and all lymph nodes on left side removed
Pathology report results 3/19 show only 2 of 23 nodes removed were malignant, tumor margins were positive - additional surgery required
Second surgery 3/31/10
Pathology results 4/13/10- all margins clear
Stage 2a bc
Started TCH 4/30/10- finished 8/12/10 (2 more weeks of Herceptin to go)
9/2/10 - started Herceptin every three weeks
PET scan 9/18-10 - all well except shadowy area in lung
Started radiation 9/7/10 - finished 10/21/10
Aromasin started 11/1/10 (hate it!)
PET scan 12/13 area in lung is smaller - probably just inflamation
Aromasin stopped 1/14/11 due to side effects
Currently on AI holiday
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