HER2 Support Group Forums - View Single Post

05-20-2005, 07:41 AM

I just finished Abraxane...I did 3cycles of Abraxane/Herceptin every 3 weeks. It was so great not to have to do the benadryl pre-meds!!And it's fast-30mins for Abraxane, 30mins for Herceptin & you're out of there!
Unfortunately for me, the regimen wasn't terribly effective-I have a single pesky lesion in my liver & it appears to be a little less active per PET, but now I have a questionable lung nodule...HOWEVER, on my last cycle the nurse noticed that they weren't dosing me correctly!!They were giving me triple dose Abraxane & only 1/3 dose Herceptin...OOPS! I think the disproportionate dosing significantly compromised the synergy between the two drugs...I think we got a little smoke but we needed FIRE! (I'm filing a formal complaint for their negligence w/the hospital). Now I've returned to a long, loving relationship w/Taxol+Herceptin & this time we're adding Carbo. This'll do the trick, I know it.
One thing you might want to look into...They've just completed a trial dosing weekly Abraxane/Herceptin with good preliminary data AND MINIMAL HAIR LOSS @Memorial Sloan Kettering in NYC! When I was doing my Abraxane research I made contact with a woman in the study...she'd been in 8 mos & only minimal hair loss. Maybe your onc would be willing to explore this with you. On one hand, it's only hair BUT it's a significant loss AGAIN! I'm bald again too & was willing to explore any reasonable treatment option to preserve my hair.
I've maintained my quality of life, teaching Pilates, training clients, everything.When I have my "drag" on (wig,eyelashes, etc), you'd never know...but the bald head, even bandanna, is a dead give-away. I just want to endure this with as little disruption, attention, etc as possible.I have to admit, there is some strange 'comfort' in atleast being familiar with being bald again. And this time around, I do fell less conspicuous when I drive around bald, or decide to slip my wig/bandana off for a moment to give my poor cranium a break.
Wishing you the most luck. Hope this info is helpful. Please feel free to contact me @jmalucas@aol.com if I can pass on any add'l info.
Until then, take good care!
Prayers, Faith & Courage!

05-20-2005, 07:41 AM	#4
jessica Guest Posts: n/a	I just finished Abraxane...I did 3cycles of Abraxane/Herceptin every 3 weeks. It was so great not to have to do the benadryl pre-meds!!And it's fast-30mins for Abraxane, 30mins for Herceptin & you're out of there! Unfortunately for me, the regimen wasn't terribly effective-I have a single pesky lesion in my liver & it appears to be a little less active per PET, but now I have a questionable lung nodule...HOWEVER, on my last cycle the nurse noticed that they weren't dosing me correctly!!They were giving me triple dose Abraxane & only 1/3 dose Herceptin...OOPS! I think the disproportionate dosing significantly compromised the synergy between the two drugs...I think we got a little smoke but we needed FIRE! (I'm filing a formal complaint for their negligence w/the hospital). Now I've returned to a long, loving relationship w/Taxol+Herceptin & this time we're adding Carbo. This'll do the trick, I know it. One thing you might want to look into...They've just completed a trial dosing weekly Abraxane/Herceptin with good preliminary data AND MINIMAL HAIR LOSS @Memorial Sloan Kettering in NYC! When I was doing my Abraxane research I made contact with a woman in the study...she'd been in 8 mos & only minimal hair loss. Maybe your onc would be willing to explore this with you. On one hand, it's only hair BUT it's a significant loss AGAIN! I'm bald again too & was willing to explore any reasonable treatment option to preserve my hair. I've maintained my quality of life, teaching Pilates, training clients, everything.When I have my "drag" on (wig,eyelashes, etc), you'd never know...but the bald head, even bandanna, is a dead give-away. I just want to endure this with as little disruption, attention, etc as possible.I have to admit, there is some strange 'comfort' in atleast being familiar with being bald again. And this time around, I do fell less conspicuous when I drive around bald, or decide to slip my wig/bandana off for a moment to give my poor cranium a break. Wishing you the most luck. Hope this info is helpful. Please feel free to contact me @jmalucas@aol.com if I can pass on any add'l info. Until then, take good care! Prayers, Faith & Courage!