tumor markers

[pilgrim37]

Hi all:

I have just completed treatment for Stage III her2+ breast cancer. Had 3 mos of taxol/herceptin, bilateral mastectomy w/ node dissection, 3 mos of A/C chemo, radiation, and balance of year on herceptin. Finished end of December 2011.

My oncologist does not want to track tumor markers in follow-up visits. He says it leads to too many false positives. This makes me nervous. I understand not wanting to scan all the time, but I'm wondering if most of you Stage III or below-ers have your tumor markers done at follow-up visits.

I understand ASCO recommends against it, but my research shows that the studies those recommendations are based on are very old. Europe does recommend tracking tumor markers. I'm a big girl and am not a fan of the "we don't want to upset you if your numbers go up" position. I was misdiagnosed for 3 years and had to fight for an MRI before I was even diagnosed properly. I like having as much info as possible.

So what do your oncologists do? Do they track tumor markers or not, and if so, what ones?

Many thanks--

Pilgrim37