To Al & Linda - How is Linda?

[IRENE FROM TAMPA]

Hi Folks -

I kind of lost track over the holiday's of how Linda is doing. First I hope you were both able to have a good one. I know receiving news of progression does not help.

I believe in your last post she was going for a second opinion on what medication to resume. Did she begin on anything other then the Xeloda? I was surprised to hear that they put her back on Xeloda if her tumor had progressed. Have they considered ABRAXANE? I have been on this relatively newly approved chemo since July and I was just rescanned. Since I began in July at the size of 4.2 x 2.2 cm it has decreased to 2.1 x 0.7 cm.
My tumor markers have dropped from :
CEA - 54.8 in June to 2.2 now
15-3- 67 in June to 47 now
and this was after giving me the month of December off.

I just saw my onc. last week and she was very pleased. I of course, wanted everything to be gone. I started back up this last Friday. This has been a very tolerable chemo for me and my CBC has been great. I have taken alot of chemo's and had a stem cell replacement so we were concerned with yet another chemo, but so far so good. I just hope my tumor does not become ammuned to this chemo and stop working.

This drug is a taxane and I know there are some people who can not take taxane's but it might be worth checking into.

Please keep me posted as to Linda's progress and what she chemo she decided on.And please forgive me if I have repeated myself in all this info. I sometime lose track of who I have told what to. Just want to pass on in hopes it might be of help to someone else.

Take care -