Ibrance (Palbociclib)
Comments
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That's funny, Myra. I did the same thing last week right before I started my second cycle. I knew they'd be the highest possible at that moment and I chose to spend it getting my fingers and toes done. Makes me feel less like an cancer patient. Had the eyebrows waxed too!
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that,s Monday and hair on Tuesday. Squeeze it all in while we can. Oh the simple pleasures we take for granted! Myra.
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Yes! Just had my hair color touched up too! Now, I just hope I have enough energy to get out and do something before the grey comes back and the nail polish wears off!
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Oh I'm jealous of you gals with nails and hair. :-) My hair has just barely started growing back from Taxotere, but my stupid finger nails are still in the process of falling off, they look awful.
I got some bad news yesterday...8 new brain mets. I'm sure I'll be booted out of the clinical trial (brain mets have to be under control in order to qualify for the trial). My insurance has approved palbo, so maybe I'll be able to keep taking it, though my liver is hurting more and more over the past few weeks, so I suspect I've got progression there as well. My onc will be running markers later this week and I expect they'll be higher.
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so sorry nancy, my prayers are with you. Myr
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Shoot, Nancy, I hate hearing that! Really hope you find something that pushes everything back without too many side effects.
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My white blood cells came up enough that I am now starting my second cycle of Ibrance?Femara. Oh how I want it to work as it brought the tumor markers down to 8 from 54. Yep we have got to figure out a way for it to be my ticket to health for the next 2-3 years. I feel well just am going to have to monitor the blood. thanks everyone for your input. Carolyn from Music City
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Praying for some relief for you, Nancy. Maybe the Palbo without a trial might be better and less stressful.
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Thank you all for the insight and inspiration. 2 days down with little SE. 19 more days to go. Praying for all of us.0 -
Happy it's going well, NTLani. The first couple of weeks seems to be very uneventful. Hoping it doesn't hit your counts too bad.
Need to get hopping this morning!
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Nancy,
Sorry about your progression. Hope your new treatment will reduce the new mets and relieve the pain you're in.
Terri
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Hi all. Everyone has been so quiet here. Hope everyone is feeling good and enjoying a pain free week. Myra.
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I am half way through my second cycle. I asked to have my blood done yesterday to see where we were with the counts since I am leaving for a cruise on Friday and don't want to be on the ship with low red and white counts.. The good news was that my WBC was good. I did do one shot of Neupogen last week. So if I can get through the entire cycle with one or two Neupogen I will be happy. No side effects at all. Am getting my blood drawn again tomorrow to see if I need another Nuepogen.
The bad news was my hemoglobin was 9.9. I had a long discussion with my onc and with the holistic pharmacist that he works with. I refused the Procrit that was recommended, but my onc and the pharmacist recommended Maitake drops, Squaline (shark cartilidge) and CoreOxygen to bring up red counts. My onc doesn't think that these supplements will affect the effectiveness of the Ibrance and neither did the pharmacist at CVS Caremark. Also taking a liquid iron supplement that is said to be very gentle on the GI and not cause constipation. It is mixed with various berries and pear, but no grapefruit. Hoping these do the trick since I absolutely refuse to do the Procrit. I will let you know.
Also my platelets which had been low are normal now, so it looks as if the Vitamin C, Astragalus and Ashwaghanda are working. Thank goodness.
Nancy, prayers for you. So sorry to hear your news. Hoping they let you stay on the trial.
Hoping that everyone is feeling well today and gets some positive news.
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Hi Pearlady, have a wonderful cruise. Where r u going? My DH and I cruise extensively.
I know you mentioned this before, but I can't seem to find it. What is the dosage for vit c and other supplements for platelets?
Thanks, Myra.
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Myra we are flying to San Juan and staying there 2 days. Then cruising to the southern Carribean, including my favorite, Grenada. Can't wait especially after the terrible winter we had.
For the Vitamin C, 1000 mg twice daily. I'll have to look when I get home, but I take a brand that was recommended as being easy on the GI. The vitamin c is taken with the Astragalus twice a day. The Ashwaghanda is twice a day before a meal.
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thx so much. I usually take ester-c since regular c upsets my stomach. Myra.
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Hi ladies of the Ibrance thread!
I have been a visitor since my stage IV (from the start) diagnosis last fall. I am going to be getting my Ibrance script in the mail this week and will definitely let you know my experience with it. I was wondering if anyone here is taking the drug in combination with Arimidex as that's what I had been started on in October and my Onc wants to add the Ibrance as opposed to switching to Femara since I have been getting good results with it. I was also wondering if anyone is on Celexa? I am currently taking it and there is a slight chance of drug interaction, so I may be switched. Are any of you taking an antidepressant with this med? If so, which ones? I'm really hoping to get the most out of this drug with minimal side effects, but aren't we all!
So glad I can read and share my experiences with a group that no one ever thought they'd be, nor ever wanted to be, a part of.
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Yes that is suppossed to be good. I take a brand named Carlson that was recommended and it is also very gentle.
Myra I see that you've taken Faslodex for a very short time. Did it not work or did you stop because you started Ibrance? Just wondering as I've not yet had Faslodex. I've spoken to my onc about it and he wants to save it for the future. I did, see, however, that they are doing clinical trials with Faslodex and Ibrance.
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Faslodex was a major fail.
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Yes, Faslodex failed for me too. However, I'd be open to seeing how it worked with Ibrance.
Have a great cruise, Pearlady! I just cruised to Mexico with girlfriends last month and my husband and son and I are going to Alaska in June. We are on Spring Break right now in Las Vegas. Going to see Shark tanks and then out to Hoover Dam today. As soon as I can drag myself out of bed! So fatigued! Heading to Zion tomorrow and Grand Canyon Thursday. Hoping my energy level cooperates!
Welcome to the thread, jjski. Hope this goes well for you
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Romansma have a great vacation. Hope you are doing some relaxing spa time in Las Vegas. Hope your energy level cooperates.
I took the Alaska cruise with friends several years ago and loved it. My favorite thing was a helicopter trip to the glaciers and actually getting out and walking. Bring something warm. I went in early August and had to buy a coat on the ship..
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Jjski my insurance company would not prescribe Ibrance without Femara. I was on Femara for five years with NED between 2003 and 2008, but my onc said that I should take Femara again and that maybe in combination with the Ibrance it would work again. Hoping that's the case. So far my markers have dropped, half way through my second cycle. Good luck to you also and hope you have great results.
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Romansma-- Zion is one of my favorite places. Enjoy!!! Pearl - have a great time on your cruise! It is still raw and cold here in Massachusetts and snow showers tomorrow!! These warm vacations sound SO SO nice!
My trial nurse called today to talk about my latest blood work. She said that I should expect my counts to hover around where they are after two cycles... Like you Pearl, I am going to try and raise my RBC and hemoglobin. Not much I can do for WBC which is now at 2.5 ( down from 11).
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Lenn, I would take 2.5 any day!
Hope: Love Zion and Bryce which I hope you are also getting too. That is the one place on earth that I actually got up to see the sunrise. Spectacular!
Pearlady: My DH did the Mendenhall Glacier in Alaska too...He loved it! Our cruise was in July and it was so warm that when we went thru the glaciers, they were serving margaritas instead of hot toddies, it was very comical. You never know with Alaska temps.
Myra
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I'm so inspired by all of you traveling women!
This afternoon I had my appointment with my oncologist to change treatments following progression from Faslodex. So sorry to say goodbye to that drug, as it kept me stable for nearly 4 years. I do feel lucky that Ibrance is out there now, however, and I'll be starting in a week or so, depending on when/if my insurance says yes, and when it gets here. In the meantime, I'll start the Femara while I wait. Last scan showed a couple small mets to the liver, and my CEA has been making a slow but steady climb for the last six months. I hope Ibrance can knock those number back down. You all have been the trailblazers, and you are making it much easier for people like me who come after to believe this is doable. Thank you for starting this thread, Romansma.
Crossing my fingers that I have no insurance snafus.
In talking about the side effects, my MO said that the low counts were the only ones they have seen (the have been involved in the trials), and just waiting a week for the counts to come back up has been working. So it doesn't sound like they have lost many patients because of the counts. He wants blood work from me monthly, a couple of days before I start each new cycle. I was glad that I only need to have bloodwork once a month.
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sandilee welcome to the group. I hope you have success. So far my only SEs have been low counts. My MO requires blood twice per month. I think he does too many TMs. Sometimes you need to give things time to work. He does tend to be quite conservative. Myra.
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Thanks, Myra! It's interesting how different docs do different things. I guess that's a good thing, actually, as it shows they're thinking and not just following a script.
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Has anyone on this site not been able to get approval for this drug, even after appeal? I am a little concerned about not being "first line" for me, which will give the company reason to deny.
It would be kind of silly, though, because the other choices, like Affinitor and chemo, are not much cheaper!
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Sandilee welcome. My only side effect has been the low red counts. I am using natural supplements to boost the red. Getting my blood checked on Thursday so we'll see if it works. My wbc has been good but I have been doing one to two Neupogin with each cycle, with this being my second cycle. A little constipation also which I'm sure taking iron is not helping . My energy is good.
Romansma enjoy Zion and the Grand Canyon. Went on a meditation trip to Sedona and Grand Canyon several years ago . The sunrise at the Grand Canyon was really spectacular .
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hope. _ enjoy your travel and families. Love your go get em attitude as a I read about your adventures from my couch - recliner. Have a blast. Mske these memories count.
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