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02-13-2008, 05:11 PM
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#1
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Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2005
Posts: 98
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Please please tell me what worked for your liver mets
My liver mets are small and numerous, exploding. Abraxane hasn't worked. Please tell me what chemo have worked on liver mets for you. I'm really desperate. It's a weird type of met. all these little mets.
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02-13-2008, 05:20 PM
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#2
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Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Connecticut
Posts: 2,077
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Hi Jan, My wife's liver mets responded well to a combination of Taxol, Herceptin, and Lapatinib(Tykerb). Talk to your onc. about this. She also had mets too numerous to count. She was on this treatment for about 15 months. I know how stressful and crazy this is for you, sweetie, but try to give the treatment time to work. Also, in another post, you said you need "pain" support. Was that a typo.? Sometimes, checking the tumour markers too often can be misleading. I think 6-8 weeks may be the norm., I'm not sure, I hope someone who knows for sure can comment. We are all here for you, hoping and praying for your comfort and effective treatment. Love, Bill
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02-13-2008, 09:42 PM
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#3
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2001
Location: Oregon
Posts: 1,756
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Hi Jan, I know it's so hard to hear "wait for the drugs to work" but it is about the only advice I can give, as in my case it's always a waiting game. I don't have liver mets, but very stubborn skin mets now, in addition to long standing lymph node mets which we've been treating since 2005. We've been bashing away at these new skin mets for over 6 months now; just starting to see some improvement. So please hang in there, and keep us posted. Liver mets are a tough one, but they can be beaten. They really can.
<3 Lolly
__________________
Sept.'99 - Dx.Stage IIIB, IDC ER/PR-, HER2+++ by IHC, confirmed '04 by FISH. Left MRM, AC x's 4, Taxol x's 4, 33 Rads, finishing Tx May 2000. Jan.'01 - local/regional recurrence, Stage IV. Herceptin/Navelbine weekly till NED August 2001, then maintenance Herceptin. Right Mast. April 2002. Local/Regional recurrence April '04, Herceptin plus/minus chemo until May '07. Gemzar added from Feb.'07-April '07; Tykerb/Abraxane until August '07, back on Herceptin plus Taxotere and Xeloda Sept. '07. Stopped T/X Nov. '07, stopped Herceptin Dec. '07, started Avastin/Taxol/Carboplatin Dec. '07. Progression in chest skin, stopped TAC March '03, started radiation.
Herceptin has served as the "Backbone" of my treatment strategy for over 6 years, giving me great quality of life. In 2005, I was privileged to participate in the University of Washington/Seattle HER2 Vaccine Trial.
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02-14-2008, 11:05 AM
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#4
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Central Coast, CA
Posts: 3,207
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HavahJ,
Have you had a new scan that shows the Abraxane did not work? or are you going by tumor markers? How long have you been on the Abraxane?
StephN did well on Navelbine/Herceptin. Very well, actually!
Taxol/Carboplatin/Herceptin knocked mine completely out in 2004, but it took about 6months.
__________________
Chris in Scotts Valley
June 2002 extensive hi grade DCIS (pre-cancer-stage 0, clean sentinal node) Mastectomy/implant - no chemo, rads. "cured?"
9/2004 Diag: Stage IV extensive liver mets (!) ER/PR- Her2+++
10/04-3/05 Weekly Taxol/Carboplatin/Herceptin , complete response!
04/05 - 4/07 Herception every 3 wks, Continue NED
04/07 - recurrence to liver - 2 spots, starting tykerb/avastin trial
06/07 8/07 10/07 Scans show stable, continue on Tykerb/Avastin
01/08 Progression in liver
02/08 Begin (TDM1) trial
08/08 NED! It's Working! Continue on TDM1
02/09 Continue NED
02/10 Continue NED. 5/10 9/10 Scans NED 10/10 Scans NED
12/10 Scans not clear....4/11 Scans suggest progression 6/11 progression confirmed in liver
07/11 - 11/11 Herceptin/Xeloda -not working:(
12/11 Begin MM302 Phase I trial - bust:(
03/12 3rd times the charm? AKT trial
5/12 Scan shows reduction! 7/12 More reduction!!!!
8/12 Whoops...progression...trying for Perjeta/Herceptin (plus some more nasty chemo!)
9/12 Start Perjeta/Herceptin, chemo on hold due to infection/wound in leg, added on cycle 2 &3
11/12 Poops! progression in liver, Stop Perjeta/Taxo/Herc
11/12 Navelbine/Herce[ptin - try for a 3 cycles, no go.
2/13 Gemzar/Carbo/Herceptin - no go.
3/13 TACE procedure
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02-14-2008, 11:29 AM
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#5
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: California's Gold Country
Posts: 404
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Dear Havah,
Add me to the list of those that had widespread liver mets, but are currently NED. I was on Taxotere and Herceptin for a little over 8 months and it really did the job. I ended up having the left lobe of my liver removed because there was a spot that kept showing up on scans, but it turned out to be scar tissue. In fact the whole left lobe was just a shriveled up prune!
I remember how scared I was, after getting the diagnosis. Our family doctor, who didn't know about Herceptin actually gave me materials to read about making end of life decisions! I was an emotional wreck, but figured I still had lots of fight in me, and was no where near ready to throw in the towel.
Please just know that there are still lots of options for liver mets. You can do it!
Love Kim
__________________
Diag. Feb 1997 4.5cm IDC <10%ER+, PR-. 5 out of 36 nodes +. Mastectomy followed by 3 rounds Adriamycin/Cytoxin.
5/1997 Hi Dose Chemo w/ Stem cell rescue. Spent 4 weeks in isolation ward. Then 6 weeks radiation.
9/2001 widespread mets to liver. 8 mos Taxotere/Herceptin brought me almost to NED. Stop Taxotere & add Femara .
11/2002 liver resection to remove spot that turned out to be necrosis. Officially NED!
7/2003 Tumor markers rising add Xeloda Disastrous reaction, 8 days hospital, but tumor markers came back to normal!
June -Dec 2004 UW Vaccine Trial.
7/2005 MRI single 11mm brain met
8/2005 Gamma Knife.
Brain MRI @3 months NED!
2006-2011 brain/body still NED
8/04/11 Taking Herceptin break, will monitor with tumor markers.
6/20/12 Tumor markers begin to rise. CA15-3 is 31.3 and Her2 Serum is at 17.1 Decide to repeat in one month.
7/23/12 CA15-3 now 49.3
Her2 Serum 26.8
8/6/12 Back on Herceptin
CA15-3 now 76
Her2 Serum now 49
11/7/12 Add weekly Taxotere for 4 cycles
2/2013 Stopped Taxotere added Perjeta. MRI shows approx. 50% reduction liver mets. CA15-3 still elevated @ 55. Will continue on just Herceptin & Perjeta.
November 2014 Continuing on Herceptin, Perjeta, and
Femara indefinitely. Guess I'm NED again, but watching those tumor markers carefully!
Dec. 2015 PET scan reveals mass in perirectal area of abdomen.biopsy confirms. Still Her2+, but no longer ER+. Bye bye Femara
Jan 2016 Begin Kadcyla
March 2016 PET scan shows tumor now barely visible, still NED everywhere else.
2016/2017 continue Kadcyla
November 2017 brain MRI reveals small focus of T2 hyperintensity with possible 4mm enhancing nodule. Short term follow up MRI suggested. Stay tuned...
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02-14-2008, 01:56 PM
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#6
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Evergreen, Colorado
Posts: 454
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Havah,
I was recently diagnosed and the liver met was part of the entire "package". But, I only had the one met, not multiple.
I am currently on Taxotere + Herceptin.
After 3 cycles...so 3* 3 weeks = 9 weeks I had a follow up Pet/CT scan and it looks like this combo is working.
Chemo #6 (and last round) will wrap up next week. Then a PET/CT is March or April.
Have you been down the Taxotere + Herceptin road?
Lori
__________________
2007
Oct - Diagnosed - Stage IV 5 c.m. IDC - Left Side er/pr- Her2+++ Node + 2/14 - Single Liver Met Double Mastectomy Nov - Begin T+H 2008
Feb-Complete 6 cycles- T&H- NED
March - Continue - Herceptin Only
April - Rads for 6 weeks
2009
Continue Herceptin - Continue NED
April - Recurrance- 3 cm. Liver Met
May - Cryosurgery
June - November - Abraxane + Herceptin
Aug - PET/CT - CTC = 0 Back to NED
2010
January - Continue NED
July - Recurrance - 3 cm Liver Met CTC=1
August - Cryosurgery #2
August - November Navelbine
November - Back to NED - End Navelbine
2011
Feb - Recur - 4 cm Liver Met - Same Left Lobe
March Surgery it is -Couldn't get a clean margin
July - Confirmed continued liver involvement
August - Begin Herceptin + Tykerb
October - Mixed results from H+T
Add Abraxane + H + T - Nov - April
2012
January PET Scan - It's working!!
April - Back to NED
July - Recurrance
August - Begin TDM-1 Trial (Taxol + TDM-1)
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