Tamoxifen Resistance in Her2+ - what to do?

[wtfsanjo]

Hello ladies -

I am a frequent lurker, and generally spend my time over at Young Survival Coalition, but I'm having a Her2-specific problem, and thought you knowledgeable ladies could help.

I'm one of the few (the proud!) that has ER-/PR+/Her2+ pathology. My PR+ is only 10%, which puts me just above borderline hormone positive.

I have been taking tamoxifen for six months with no problems, but there is a lot of research indicating that tamoxifen has little to no benefit in Her2+ patients. My onc assured me that the herceptin interacts with the tamoxifen to mitigate that resistance, but I only have three doses of herceptin left. So, in about nine weeks I'm going to be taking a hormonal medication that is probably doing nothing.

Today I asked the onc "do you think doing ovarian suppression + arimidex is too aggressive?" and, unfortunately, she said "NO!" very emphatically. She said it might be a good idea due to my very young age and the aggressiveness of my tumor (have you ever even heard of someone with a Ki-67 at 85%?!?! - uggh!)

If I was highly ER+ or PR+ I would be all over OS + arimidex, but I just have a 10% PR+ receptor. The benefit from OS or any hormonal therapy is probably small, but we all know that 1% improved survival is as good as 100% improved survival if it keeps you alive.

So should I go ahead with the OS? I just came out of menopause - is it worth it to go back in? What would you do with such a small PR+ receptor?

PLEASE HELP!

katie