Question about when I am considered 1 year out?

[Tami]

My onc said the clinical trials start the clock at the end of the last chemo treatment. For me I like to go by dx'd date because I have a tendency to remember that more easily and I like the fact that I get to count the 7 months it took for lumpectomy, node dissection and chemo.

Best
Tami

[Becky]

If you ask enough people (or doctors) you will get a variety of answers. Many say it is the date of diagnosis (I like this one because then it boosts your years of survival by at least 6-7 months). Others say it is the date of your last active treatment (sans Herceptin as an adjuvant).

So for example, if chemo was your last active treatment, then it would be the date of your last chemo treatment. But if you needed to also have radiation after chemo, then it would be the date of your last radiation treatment.

Lastly, some say it is the date you started any active treatment (which for most of us is the date of surgery - or the date you started neo-adjuvant chemotherapy).

Best regards

Becky

[al from Canada]

The end of last (primary) chemo makes sense because if you go by Dx date, (which I think most studies use), why does it matter because for many, the cancer has been in the breats for 8+ years. For metastatic desease, the dx date seems obvious because of the multiple chemos.

Al