Capecitabine or ctDNA Monitoring with TNBC
Hi. I had TNBC in one breast. I underwent chemo and had a successful lumpectomy. The surgeon and oncologist have confirmed the cancer is gone. I start radiation on March 16 to reduce the risk of recurrence in the breast. The oncologist recommends I take the oral chemo drug, capecitabine, for 6 months to reduce the recurrence somewhere else in my body. She also offered ctDNA testing for 2 years as an alternative plan when I showed resistance to more chemo.
I’d love to hear of others’ experiences with treatments to reduce the risk of recurrence of TNBC.
Thank you!!!
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Hi, I’m in treatment for TNBC. Just had my 4th infusion of ptc. Lumpectomy after chemo done. I’m curious about reducing reoccurrence risks too.
What is ctDNA? What stage were you?
Glad to hear your cancer is gone. Hooray.
Marian0 -
@karenanne528 Welcome to you! We're so sorry for the reasons that bring you here, but we're really glad you've found us. You're sure to find this community a wonderful source of advice, information, encouragement, and support — we're all here for you!
As you can already see, others are happy to share their experiences - we hope more folks will be chiming in soon.
Reducing your risk of recurrence is a very popular topic around here. It's a very individual decision that takes many circumstances into account, including the agressiveness of your diagnosis, and other recurrence risk factors. Capecetabine (Xeloda) is a common recommendation, and while effective, it does come with its own set of side effects, which can be manageable but affect quality of life. This thread is a good one to browse to find out what you might expect with this medication.
@marcasey ctDNA stands for circulating tumor DNA, which are fragments of the cancer cells’ DNA that enter the bloodstream. A blood test, also called a liquid biopsy, is done to look for ctDNA. Finding ctDNA in the bloodstream can let doctors know that cancer cells are starting to divide and grow.
CtDNA monitoring is a useful tool also, though many experts aren't completely behind using this type of monitoring for 100% accurate reporting.
From our site:
"Circulating tumor DNA in early-stage breast cancer
Liquid biopsy tests can find ctDNA in people with early-stage disease. This is also an area of active research, because like circulating tumor cells, ctDNA can lead to a recurrence and metastatic disease. But also similarly, if ctDNA is found in someone who doesn’t have a recurrence or metastatic disease, it’s unclear what doctors should do.
In a 2024 review article in npj Breast Cancer, researchers said that ctDNA tests in early-stage breast cancer are a promising tool for screening, evaluating how effective a treatment is, and monitoring any residual disease. Residual disease is very small spots of cancer or individual cancer cells that may be left behind after surgery, chemotherapy, radiation, and other primary treatments.
But they pointed out that questions remain about how to select people who would most benefit from the tests, when the tests should be done, and the accuracy and reliability of the tests."
We hope this helps. Please let us know if we can help you find more information or support you in other ways.
Welcome again!
—The Mods
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