Topic: Chemotherapy for Stage IV

Sep 2, 2010 05:56 PM august012001 wrote:

Marybe, 

the first oncologist didn't answer when i told him about you, then he started laughing but agreed the abraxane/avastin is a good combo for me and it's working. i feel so much better!!  My new oncologist and his assistant shook their heads and said message boards weren't a good resource. he doesn't even want me to research information. he says 'the internet has made my job harder'! but i still talk to him about things i've learned!! It's my life!! 

Sep 7, 2010 01:50 PM mom2acat wrote:

My oncologist took me off the CMF, and I started on weekly Velban (Vinblastine) today.

I just got home, so it's too early to tell right now how I am going to feel from it.

Sep 12, 2010 06:07 AM mom2acat wrote:

Has anyone done Velban, or Vinblastine? I haven't been able to find out much about it; not from a personal experience anyway, and I've checked other message boards too. I posted about it in the "help me get through treatment" forum but I haven't had any response.

I've read enough medical articles about it; I'd really like to hear from someone though who has actually used it.

Sep 21, 2010 01:48 PM, edited Sep 21, 2010 02:34 PM by momsgonnabeatthis

Hi, i was wondering if anyone out there has any stories..positive ones...Im very very worried..Mom had breast cancer stage 2 about 11 years back with 12/24 lymph node involvment...She got a radical mastectomy done..and got Cytoxin and Adraimycin for chemo...After which she was on Tamoxifen and Femara each for 5 years..This year..3 weeks ago..discovered she had bone mets..and small spots in brain..which are being currently treated with radiation, and a liver tumor 3cm..Radiation to the head will end on Friday...and then either Taxol or Gemzar will start..she got her first round of Herceptin last week..to be done weekly.  She is also Her 2 Neu Positive.  PLEASE, Please help me out with what you know.....I really needed to reach out to you brave and beautiful ladies...Thank you and GOD BLESS each and every one of you...!!!!!!!

Sep 24, 2010 03:27 AM Marybe wrote:

Alinakapur,  You are right, but there are also many other combinations and types of chemo used for BC.  ALso all oncos do not use the adriamycin the way they used to because of potential heart damage. 

Sep 28, 2010 10:40 AM Alpal wrote:

Greta - I have been on Xeloda for the past 2 months (almost). I, also, was scared of it, particularly the hand foot syndrome thing. My onc had all his Xeloda patients on a one week on, one week off schedule and he maintains that this schedule has drastically reduced side effects. I had TMs done at the end of the first month and they were lower, but not a huge drop. My own "personal marker" is my left shoulder and the pain in it was gone at the end of the first week. I actually feel better than I have in ages. I started off religiously using bag balm on my feet at night (with socks) - as time as gone on with no indication of hand foot syndrome, I have become less religious about that regimen!  I will be getting a PET scan next week and am anxious to see if my bones show the improvement I'm expecting. I am hesitant to sing the praises of Xeloda too loudly, as I know each of us has such different reactions to treatment. For instance, I expected Gemzar to be easy peasy and it was worse than taxoterrible! Please feel free to ask any questions and I'll be happy to respond. FYI, I'm no spring chicken either - was 63 in August.

Sep 29, 2010 06:22 PM stage4triplenegsurvivor wrote:

Sportsmom,

You say you have liver cancer, is it that or do you now have mets to your liver from your breast cancer? Taxol and avastin is a great combo. If you are triple neg, carboplatin, taxol and avastin totally got rid of my lung mets. Hang in there!! Hopefully this will kick it to the curb again. christi

Sep 29, 2010 07:53 PM Alpal wrote:

Michele - what chemo will you be on? And - what did you do earlier in the year? They all seem to have their own peculiar SEs.

Sep 30, 2010 03:04 PM IwillBhealed wrote:

Sportsmom.. Just to let you I had a liver lesion when i got Dx. I did taxol/avastin it cleared up my  lesion.

Sep 30, 2010 05:59 PM Ezscriiibe wrote:

Thanks, Alpal!

What about WBCs? Oh, and I will be sure to get my SenokotS and eat it like candy like I did with my first chemo sets.

I guess what I want to know is, will I be hit like I did before? Almost bedridden the first and second day? 

I was soooo tired and weak. ugh. I guess in the end it doesn't matter. It is what it is and I just have to accept it.

Speaking of Jim Beam, can we drink alcohol during chemo? I feel like a bloody mary from time to time. . . .

Oct 3, 2010 11:47 AM, edited Oct 3, 2010 11:50 AM by Marybe

  Avastin was one I hated, but as my onco said to me You hate all of them....that is not really true, but I guess I did gripe a lot about avastin and abraxane.  On another board someone was writing about avastin and how it is being approved as really being an adjunct (sp) to chemo.  All I know is that when I went to MDA they onco I saw there told me it had not been proven to enhance the effectiveness of chemo at all, but somehow had been approved anyway and I do know my local onco was prescribing it with just about all the chemos because I always ask others in the treatment room what they are getting. There was one woman who was really nervous when she had to be off of it for some sort of surgery she was having because her treatment has been working and she didn't want to mess things up.  For me what I objected to was that I was so totally clogged up, sniffing and snorting like I had a cold all the time. I have problems with allergies as it is and this just added to my congestion.  And I was getting nose bleeds and just did not find much that I did like about it at all.  Plus it takes forever for anything to heal when you are on it.  But that was just my experience and I guess if it actually helps, then it is a worthwhile drug.  As with so many of the drugs, what works for one and what the SEs are for someone, does not mean it will be the same with you.  I am now on navelbine and my only SEs are constipation which I have found is no problem at all if I take 4 sennaS before going to bed.  Also I have neuropathy, but it is not anywhere near as bad as it was when I was on abraxane(member of the taxol family).  My WBC was low several times on navelbine, but never so low they did not do my treatment, just gave me a shot of nuporgen(think that is what it was)and cut the dosage of navelbine. In defense of avastin, I will say my tumors shrunk and my CA 27/29 went down when doing the A/A combo, but how much of that was due to the avastin, I do not know. I actually got hives the lst time they gave it to me so I would always have to do premeds before getting it. 

Re drinking....I don't think I would drink to excess, but my onco never told me I could not drink at all and my friend who is just went through chemo said when she asked her onco if it was true she shouldn't drink, the dr laughed and said no, you can drink.  I we told everyone no alcohol period, no one would do the chemo.  I lost my taste for drinking pretty much after the chemo...it burns and my stomach just doesn't tolerate it very well these days.   Alpal is pretty much right about them giving you about anything you want and allowing you to do things when you are stage lV....I have all sorts of pain meds (most of which I don't even need) and I have a handicap plaque for my car and if I feel like I am getting a sinus infection or something I just call my GP up and he will call me in a Rx for a Zpac without me having to go in.  So that is one of the few perks.  I hope all goes well with your treatment....I understand your apprehension about what the SEs will be as it is always scary and we never know what the SEs will be until we try the drugs ourself.  We are all sort of like guinea pigs when you come right down to it.

Mom2acat, How are you doing on the Velbane? 

Oct 4, 2010 06:29 AM Marybe wrote:

Greta,  There is a thread Why do I feel like we are being Overlooked on here that is exactly about that, how Stage lV is not discussed.....you might want to check it out. 

Oct 4, 2010 12:45 PM busqueen wrote:

I'm starting taxotere on thursday, 3 weeks on, 1 week off, for my bone mets.  Also doing zometa. Feel like I'm moving into the next "phase" of being stage IV.

Oct 7, 2010 11:34 AM, edited Oct 7, 2010 11:35 AM by bopeep

Hey you experts on Taxol and Avastin,

Glad to hear your good news on liver mets (Greta note this).

I just got started on my first cycle this Monday.  I am going to have one weekly infusion for 3 weeks, then skip the 4th:  1st Infusion:  Taxol+Avastin, 2nd Infusion: Taxol only  3rd: Taxol + Avastin.  Tell me what to expect.  This will keep up for at least 3-4 cycles.

So far for me:

Tueday after infusion I started developing painful tumor flares in my liver and lower lung.  Got going on percocet.  Little nausea.  Tried to go for a walk and just ended up coughing my lungs out and getting exhausted.

Wednesday:   Woke with severe pain in my back, much more localized.  Another tumor flare? Took a percoset thinking this was the beginning of something awful, but by the time it wore off I was pain free.  Slept most of the day.  Didn't want to eat anything but pecan sandies and milk all day.

Thursday. Sleeping a lot, percocet hangover--do not want to take that again unless it's absolutely necessary!!...bit of a headache but no pain. Nausea and fatigue a little worse. Threw away the pecan sandies. Took a 25 minute walk--no coughing!!! Too tired to think about doing anything much indoors. 

Is the fatigue going to get better or be cumulative?  Is there a point where I will start feeling normal enough to resume activities?

Bo 

Oct 7, 2010 01:19 PM lwd wrote:

Hi Greta,

I do hope the new meds help you.  I'm almost 2 years on Femara, and still NED.  We're fortunate when the AI's help for so long.  I hope I can be as lucky as you've been - 6 years is wonderful.  Wishing you all the best in your new treatment.

Lane