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AlaskaAngel · 06-21-2006, 06:58 AM

Chelee,

The way chemo is thought to work is that you get a dose and it kills some cancer cells, and then before the next dose the cancer cells that weren't vulnerable at the time of the first dose (i.e., the cancer cells that weren't actively dividing at the time) are still increasing -- but there are less and less of them each time after each dose.

This is why it is considered important to get all doses, and to get them on time so that the numbers continue to be less each time.

I don't know what the effect of getting the missed dose "late" (at the end of treatment) would be, or if it happens enough that there is any good information about it. Very likely the best source of info on this would be any collection of data about those with bc who happened to be in the middle of treatment during the disaster in New Orleans. So see if you can connect with any research about those patients, or with cancer-related institutions in that area.

AlaskaAngel

P.S. I am just one single case, and I am stage 1 so keep that in mind, but I was supposed to get my chemo every 3 weeks and ended up getting all 6 treatments every 4 weeks, and I'm NED almost 4 years later....

06-21-2006, 06:58 AM	#2
AlaskaAngel Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Alaska Posts: 2,018	Chelee, The way chemo is thought to work is that you get a dose and it kills some cancer cells, and then before the next dose the cancer cells that weren't vulnerable at the time of the first dose (i.e., the cancer cells that weren't actively dividing at the time) are still increasing -- but there are less and less of them each time after each dose. This is why it is considered important to get all doses, and to get them on time so that the numbers continue to be less each time. I don't know what the effect of getting the missed dose "late" (at the end of treatment) would be, or if it happens enough that there is any good information about it. Very likely the best source of info on this would be any collection of data about those with bc who happened to be in the middle of treatment during the disaster in New Orleans. So see if you can connect with any research about those patients, or with cancer-related institutions in that area. AlaskaAngel P.S. I am just one single case, and I am stage 1 so keep that in mind, but I was supposed to get my chemo every 3 weeks and ended up getting all 6 treatments every 4 weeks, and I'm NED almost 4 years later....