Herceptin only

[laurab]

My oncologist told me that , in my case, having chemo. with the Herceptin would increase my chance of cure by 1%. Yep - just 1%.
I figured that 1% was not worth the harm that chemo would do to the rest of my body. As to side effects , I do think most of my problems are due to the Arimidex , not the Herceptin. Since I also have arthritis it is often difficult to tell what is causing the joint pain.
I have been trying to lose weight and actually lost 12 pounds since going on Arimidex and Herceptin. I have had terrible hot flashes but find that acupuncture helps quite a bit. I am also taking Vit.D and fish oil. My lab tests did show that my Vit. D level was quite low.

[Hopeful]

I am sorry I did not see this thread when it was first posted; I was consumed with running a conference at the time.

I was dx at age 52, postmeno, 1.3 cm, node negative, ER+ 80%, Pr+ 50%, Her2 +++ by IHC in June of 2006. My path report gave my Ki-67 as "11% (borderline)". As this is an indication of the rate of proliferation, which was low, and being post meno and highly hormonally positive, my research indicated that I would receive a very minimal benefit from chemotherapy. My oncologist offered me a year of Herceptin w/o chemo, which I did. I had radiation to the affected breast that started around the time the Herceptin tx did, and went on AI's after rads were completed.

The SE's I noticed from Herceptin were the thinning and splitting fingernails and the drippy nose. While my fingernails returned to normal after my tx was completed, I am sorry to say the drippy nose has not. I never had nausea, diarrhea or any gastro symptoms from the Herceptin; I would notice a weird taste in my mouth during and immediately post infusion that was like the glue you lick on the back of an envelope, but that passed.

The SE's from the AI's, on the otherhand were worse, LOTs of joint pain, wrist pain, terrible vaginal atrophy, and tinnitus. The stiffness and paid would improve for a short time when I switched AI's from Femara to Arimidex, but then return. I switched between the two at least 4 times, and determined, also based on my research, that being Her2+, I would derive less benefit from hormone therapy than those who were Her2-. I stopped AI treatment after exactly 3 years. All of the stiffness symptoms cleared up when I stopped the AI, and have not returned. The vaginal atrophy continues to be a problem, and the tinnitus never resolved.

I hope this is helpful.

Hopeful