When is enough Herceptin for early stage?

[atdec05]

Rinaina - what a nice name. My daugher's name is Raina.

Here's another good site for Herceptin
http://www.breastcancer.org/tre_sys_immune_idx.html

Rhonda - your diagnosis is similar to mine.

Though my treatment differed in that I didn't have Taxol.

Did other stage 1 women not have Taxol? It seems I'm in the minority for this.
I'm stage 1 (2 tumors - total size 1.05cm, extensive DCIS), node neg., er/pr-, her2+, grade 3

I had a masectomy (margins not clean on lumpectomy)
4 DD A/C and am on a year of Herceptin

- Anna

[rinaina]

thanks for the site referal, every little bit helps. actually my name is rina, i just use rinaina as a screen name, don't ask me why...just do. not sure i knew what you meant about 4dd etc.rinaina

[atdec05]

sorry, you develop a shorthand about diagnosis & treatment after a while.


4 DD AC is 4 dose-dense treatments of Adriamycin & Cytoxan.
That means I got treatments every 2 weeks instead of ev. 3 weeks.

[rinaina]

so much to learn and every day I learn more and more thanks to all of you.

[tousled1]

I haven't started my herceptin as yet but will start immediatly after my surgery on June 8. My oncologist is recommending herceptin every 3 weeks for one year. Seems that the one year of herceptin is the current protocol. Who knows when and if this may change. All I know is that I am thankful everyday that there is a drug that can attack the HER2 cancer growing cell.

[rinaina]

Does everyone start with herceptin before chemo? I thought it's chemo first then hereceptin then radiation? So much variance.

rinaina

[atdec05]

Herceptin can be given with certain drugs, like Taxol. It is not given with Adriamycin because that increases the risk of heart problems.


Many women have a protocol of Adriamycin/cytoxan followed by Taxol with Herceptin, then continue on to complete the year of Herceptin.

- Anna