Posted on: Aug 20, 2012 11:48 PM
Joined: Aug 2012
Posts: 3
MommasBoy wrote:
Hi Ladies. I have been browsing this site since February 2012 to help my mom. I want to thank you all for the support in just reading your posts. Here is some background info and I'm hoping for any help/advice possible.
My mom is 53 years old and in February 2012 she was taking a shower and felt a lump in her breast. We went to see her gynecologist and a mammogram was ordered. The mammogram revealed a tumor and she was referred to a breast surgeon. The breast surgeon performed a biopsy and confirmed the tumor as cancerous. The surgeon recommended a lumpectomy and the lumpectomy was done on february 29th. The surgery was considered a success, the tumor was removed with clear margins and the sentinal lymph node was removed and clear. The cancer was 3cm, ER+/PR+/HER2- and stage IIa.
We then went to an oncologist who said that at this time my mom was considered cancer free. He recommedned 4 cycles of taxotere and cytoxan along with radiation as insurance incase there were some cancer cells left behind. We went along with the treatment and after the 2nd cycle she was switched from taxotere to arbraxane due to an allergic reaction. She completed the chemo on June 30th and started radiation.
Throughout everything her blood tests were always fine and her oncologist always referred to her progonosis as excellent. However, after our last visit the oncologist called to let us know that one of her tumor markers, the CEA level, was elevated to 20ng/mL (normal is <5). He re-tested it a week later and now it was at 25ng/mL. He ordered a PET scan and we just found out that the PET scan showed 6 lesions on her liver and some enlarged lymph nodes (one was the mediastinal lymph node). He is now recommending a liver biopsy. Our doctor said that he is shocked and did not expect something like this to happen. We are so surprised and confused. How could this happen?
We have so many questions and dont know where to start. We are meeting with our oncologist tomorrow to discuss but does anyone have an opinion or advice? What does this sudden increase in the CEA level tell us? How could the cancer spread to her liver while she is still going through her initial treatment? Shouldnt the chemotherapy have killed any cancer cells? Is it possible the lesions were already on the liver before the surgery? Why wasnt a PET scan or some baseline scan done when she was first diagnosed to see if the lesions were already on the liver? How do we even know that the breast cancer is the primary source of cancer?
Thanks in advance for your help and support.
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Tina2
MD
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 969
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Aug 21, 2012 12:08 AM Tina2 wrote:
MommasBoy, you ask "How could this happen?"
I'm afraid the answer is, "Who knows?"
It's understandable that you're upset, and commendable that you're trying to help your mother. However, that's quite a barrage of questions, all of which are impossible for us to answer and all of which should be directed to your mother's doctor.
As far as support is concerned, how about urging your mom to join us on this forum?
Tina
Dx Stage IV, mets, ER+/PR+
banjobanjo
Bonn Germany
Joined: Oct 2011
Posts: 958
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Aug 21, 2012 02:35 AM banjobanjo wrote:
That is a lot of questions - you need to write them down and make sure they all get answered at the oncologist appointment because you need to fully understand what is happening now and how they can help your mother now and in the future. We all ask 'why' and 'how' it happened to us - we never get answers because the doctors cannot tell what triggered each individual cancer. What is important is that you are obviously a good son and you need to channel your love for your mother into practical help - ask the questions for her and with her and support her through her treatment.
Barbara 'And we are here as on a darkling plain, swept with confused alarms of struggle and flight, where ignorant armies clash by night.
Dx 10/5/2011, DCIS, 1cm, Stage IV, Grade 3, 14/16 nodes, mets, ER-/PR-, HER2-
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Aug 21, 2012 12:43 PM MommasBoy wrote:
Thanks for your kind words ladies.
Just got back from the doctors office. He thinks the spread occurred before the surgery and it wasnt detected because they dont check PET/CT scans unless there are abnormal blood tests/symptoms. He thinks that the cancer didnt respond to the chemotherapy and it looks like an advanced cancer. He said hes shocked to see the cancer reoccur so quick. Were getting a liver biopsy done this week..hoping for a miracle..
He says that if is mets of the breast cancer he will probably start hormonal therapy along with oral chemotherapy like xeloda. Have any of you ladies had an experience like this? A reoccurance so quick during treatment?
Thanks again..
CoolBreeze
Sacramento
Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 4,650
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Aug 21, 2012 02:55 PM CoolBreeze wrote:
MommasBoy, I recurred immediately after treatment. I think it is possible that it was there all along and as soon as treatment was over, made itself known. I, too, had mets to my liver. I just wrote this in another thread, but I did another chemo, Navelbine, to shrink them down, then I had a liver resection to cut them out. That is not a standard treatment but I live near a major cancer center where they are doing these kinds of aggressive procedures on people with mets in only one organ.
My surgery was last October and I seem to be NED (no evidence of disease). There are many women here who have liver mets and who have gotten to NED without surgery - one is on year 8, I think. The original chemo cocktail didn't work for your mother but there are lots of others in the arsenal, so don't give up hope yet.
How old are you?
Ann's cancer blog:
www.butdoctorihatepink.com .....multicentric/multifocal IDC/ILC+DCIS/LCIS/ADH Official dx? "Your breast was a mess." ~UniMastectomy/Chemo/Herceptin/Tamoxifen/Recon Almost Done! Oh wait. mets to liver 5/21/11 Now Stage IV
Dx 8/17/2009, IDC, 4cm, Stage IIa, Grade 3, 0/3 nodes, ER+/PR-, HER2+
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Aug 21, 2012 11:54 PM MommasBoy wrote:
Hi CoolBreeze, I'm 25. I agree that it was there all along. What scares us is that the original chemo didnt work to kill it or slow its growth if it was there all along. The oncologist even said that its concerning that the cancer was able to grow during the treatment and it could indicate that its some sort of advanced cancer. But he did say that just because it didnt respond to the original chemo it doesnt mean that other chemo drugs wont work. We have the liver biopsy scheduled for friday now. He said that if it the biopsy confirms that it is the breast cancer spreading he would probably give hormonal therapy (arimidex) and oral chemotherapy (xeloda). I think I will ask him about IV chemo like navelbine too. We are also looking into a second opinion to the treatment that he recommends at memorial sloan kettering (they told us the wait for an appointment is 3 weeks!) or fox chase cancer center in philadelphia.
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Aug 22, 2012 12:35 AM cookiegal wrote:
MB, I'm not a 4, but I like MSK.
My two friends who are stage 4 have both done well there. (One is nothing short of a miracle.)
Not everyone loves it, they do tend to run behind schedule, but I think they have a good array of complimentary services, and support programs.
I feel like I am treated with dignity there.
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Aug 22, 2012 04:52 AM KarmaKittie wrote:
I know what a punch to the gut this all can feel like. My mom was diagnosed the summer of 2009. We thought it was stage I, but after surgery they did a scan that showed mets to her liver. Just to give you a little touch of hope, she walked about 2 miles today for exercise, and after that, I had her laughing really hard on the phone about literallly having ants in my pants! (They pinched me!)
PLEASE remember and tell your mom that just because her first line of chemo didn't work, that doesn't mean another might not keep her stable or even take her to NED. Since my mom was diagnosed, there are at least 3 new treatments out there for metastatic breast cancer, and there are new treatments being tested all the time.
Ask your oncologist every little question you might have. Write them down, taken them in with you, and ask him to repeat stuff if you don't have time to write down responses. Be sure you are comfortable with all the information you are being given -- that's the best, most solid advice I can give you.
Really, I just want to let you know you are not alone, and your situation is not uncommon. Hugs to you and your mom, and if you ever would like someone to talk to, feel free to PM me.
Mom's the patient. Liver mets on diagnosis. On Taxol/Herceptin since 9/09. Progression in liver - switched to Tykerb/Xeloda 1/12.
Dx 7/30/2009, IDC, 2cm, Stage IV, Grade 3, 0/3 nodes, mets, ER-/PR-, HER2+