HER2 Support Group Forums - View Single Post - prognosis for early stage node negative her2 defined:

AlaskaAngel · 02-08-2006, 12:08 PM

Thank you so much for continuing to explore the issues from the chat Sunday, in trying to determine factors that help with decision-making for early stage bc.

I assume the studies are looking at the broad range of patients over time regardless of whatever treatment they may or may not have had, and since most do have chemo (?) then this would apply despite chemo. Considering that the higher the mitotic rate, the better chemo supposedly works...IF the correct chemo is utilized, and since I was considered HER2+++ I received 6 courses of CAF (Adriamycin being considered to be the most useful for HER2). It is very interesting. I was treated just prior to the changeover to the newer generation chemos using a taxane and I continue to question why that in itself is not considered a "higher risk" factor for me, since they can't have it both ways; either the newer therapies are significantly better (leaving me at higher risk) or they aren't. I also missed out on dose-dense. But if these studies looked at long-term then they would be using the data from those treated with older chemo's, like me?

I probably don't even need the mitotic rate to tell me my cancer was fast-growing, since it measured 1.0 cm by ultrasound initially and 2 1/2 months later it measured over 1.5 cm by ultrasound. Mitotic rate was listed on the path report only as "intermediate to high".

AlaskaAngel

02-08-2006, 12:08 PM	#4
AlaskaAngel Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Alaska Posts: 2,018	Light Thank you so much for continuing to explore the issues from the chat Sunday, in trying to determine factors that help with decision-making for early stage bc. I assume the studies are looking at the broad range of patients over time regardless of whatever treatment they may or may not have had, and since most do have chemo (?) then this would apply despite chemo. Considering that the higher the mitotic rate, the better chemo supposedly works...IF the correct chemo is utilized, and since I was considered HER2+++ I received 6 courses of CAF (Adriamycin being considered to be the most useful for HER2). It is very interesting. I was treated just prior to the changeover to the newer generation chemos using a taxane and I continue to question why that in itself is not considered a "higher risk" factor for me, since they can't have it both ways; either the newer therapies are significantly better (leaving me at higher risk) or they aren't. I also missed out on dose-dense. But if these studies looked at long-term then they would be using the data from those treated with older chemo's, like me? I probably don't even need the mitotic rate to tell me my cancer was fast-growing, since it measured 1.0 cm by ultrasound initially and 2 1/2 months later it measured over 1.5 cm by ultrasound. Mitotic rate was listed on the path report only as "intermediate to high". AlaskaAngel