well i had my ct scan results back today and the liver mets have grown by around 25% since chemo ended in july . i am sick to the stomach and have cried all day . , they are now starting me on taxotere and capcitobene as they seem to think the liver tumours may not be hormone dependent now as have failed tamox , zolidex and now aromasin .
more chemo yuk . this is such a sly disease . i am so fed up . has anyone else failed hormonals and been put on chemo .? i had the red devil first and that shrank the tumours right down to 5%.
thanks , hugs Tracy xxxx
I don’t post on secondaries but read the posts and can i just say i am gutted for you Tracy. I know this means nothing really and i hope to God others will be able to help you those who are in the same situation. This is one cruel cruel disease.
thinking of you and praying for you
Rxxxxxx
Hi Tracy, I think lots find hormonal treatments fail and they are back on chemo.
I’m sorry to hear your news but take heart I know, have met, lots of women who have had many different chemo treatments, they are still here, still living well. I know ladies, with liver mets, who have been on capecitabine for years.
Good Luck…Take Care…xx
Hi Tracy,
So sorry to hear your news - I know how hard it is to come to terms with. Give yourself a few days to get your head round things, and I am sure (well, I hope) you will start to pick yourself up again.
My first chemo was EC (E=red devil) and my liver tumours shrank from around 30% involvement to around 5%. Then I had tamoxifen for six months and then more progression. Then I had taxol, which kept me stable but not much more. Then after only eleven weeks on Femara (letrazole an aromatase inhibitor), I had more progression and so have been on capecitabine since January. I will find out tomorrow what the current situation is. By the way, as far as I know, only around 30% of ER+ breast cancers respond to hormone treatments, so this is far from uncommon.
So yes, have been there, done that, bought the t-shirt and still here to tell the tale - and so will you be.
Sorry it was bad news but good luck with your new treatment.
Jenny
xx
Tracy
I can relate to exactly how you feel… its very hard at first to get your head around but some how you do…
I am slightly different as i dont have liver mets, i have lung mets… I had the epi and then cmf, then had a reccurence whilst on tamoxifen, had more chemo - Taxotere and then followed on with herceptin, zoladex and arimidex… then got lung mets… tried the leap trial - capetcitbine and tykerb, both failed for me and now on Vinorelbine and herceptin… hoping and praying that this will finaly kick my tumours into touch…
Tracy, its really hard when you get bad news… i still struggle now but it will get easier as each day passes, believe me… Have a cry, rant and come on here for support, thats what we are here for but dont give in… theres so much more left to try…
there will be more ladies i’m sure along soon to tell you thier stories, its so disheartening at first and i can remember feeling that despair that you are probably feeling right now but the best advice i can give you is take one day at a time to get by and you will…
Taxotere is a toughie… i know of one girl who had it for liver mets and it shrunk her tumour to nothing… have hope…
much love to you and good luck… let us know how you get on
Love jakki
xxx
I know where you are coming from it is such a shock when things are not working we think we have been coping well and have come to some sort aof acceptance of our situations and then you get this sort of result and wham…, take a deep breath and take a very small step at a time have that good cry and even a really load scream - sorry don’t know your home situation but take every bit of support you can if you can’t talk to friends or OH the hospital support or charity will be great or phone the help available on this site.
There are quite a few of us on this site who are doing very well with the liver mets so just hang in there.
I also have liver and bone mets not quite the same as your treatment except that the hormone stuff hasn’t worked on me either, started with CMF in 2001…done epi capecitabine(worked well for a while) vinoralabine… just started yesterday on Taxol and Avastin today as well as scan.
Just take a big hug from me and you will get your head around this.
Love W
Hi Tracey
As Wisdens has suggested, please phone the helpline if you feel it would help to talk things through, sorry to read that you are going through such a difficult and worrying time.
Number is 0808 800 6000 Monday to Friday 9am-5pm and Saturday 9am-2pm.
Best wishes
Lucy
Moderator
Breast Cancer Care
Hi there Tracy, huge hugs. You’re right, it is a sly disease. Wish I could give you words of comfort, but I’ve not been where you are. Others have though and are giving you loads of encouragement. So I shall just send you huge hugs and hope for peace and serenity to surround you.
Ruth x
Hiya Tracy
So sorry you had such bad news, when I was first diagnosed with my liver mets they tried Tamoxifen only I got worse instead of better. Am now on weekly Epi & continous 5FU which seems to be keeping everything under control. Good luck with your new treatment, we are all thinking of you.
Allie x
Hi Tracy - I know exactly how you feel…I’m 29 now and been ‘dealing’ with this for 6 years now - Was on zoladex for 2 years with bone mets then it failed and spread to lungs have also tried tamoxifan, letrozole and exemestane, the oncs also think that my tumours are hormone resistant - had taxotere in Jan 07 which finished in June, had shrank tumours but then had scan results last week and they’ve doubled in size so have just started capcetabine, bleughh
Hope things go ok for you
Lots of Love
xx
Hi Tracy
Can’t really comment on the chemo not working, as have had 3 x FEC and 1 x Taxotere so far for bc and liver mets. I had an ultrasound a few weeks ago and not had results yet, got onc next wednesday, but they are not checking my liver til the end of my chemo.
I know how you feel with the dx though, as I was absolutely gutted to be told 10 days after initial bc dx, that it had already spread to my liver. I am 39 with a nearly 4 year old and an 11 month old, so complete devastation.
I hope that your new treatment works, and as the other ladies have said, there are others on here with liver mets and are doing well, so we just have to hang on in there and pray that yours/our treatment works.
Hope it all goes ok and let us know how you are. Sending lots of cyberhugs.
Dawn
xxx
Hi tracey
So sorry to hear your news. I’ve also had tamoxifen, Aromasin, Zoladex and after my lung secondaries were dignosed last october and I had FEC I was given Arimidex which also seems to have failed as although my recent scans wereapparantly ok my tumour markers were up so I’m now on Vinorebline.
I was distraught as I’d hoped the Arimdex would have held it in check for longer.
I’m also interested to see that people are having Vinorebline with Herceptin. I have been told that as my original tumour was not HER2 positive Herceptinis not an option. Should they reasess given that various aromatise inhibitors do not seem to have worked.
Wishing you all the best for Taxotere, I think it’s along the line for me but decided this time that Vinorebline was the one to go with. It’s soul destroying to be back in the chemo routine though.
I had a portacath fitted and I have to say that has made a huge difference, no more poking fruitlessly and painfully for veins. The chemo can also be put in faster apparantly
Hope all goes well
Kathryn
Hi Tracey,
I’m so sorry you got bad news. I hope you’re able to have a good cry/ rant if you need to, and please keep us all posted .
Love,
India
Hi Tracy
Really sorry to hear your bad news. We all have to live in hope that the treatments are working and then it comes as such a shock when we discover that that isn’t the case. It will take you time to adjust and find that hope again but I’m sure that you can. So spoil yourself rotten (and make sure everybody else is as well) and give yourself that time.
Good luck with the chemo and lots of hugs Kay
Hi Tracy,
I am so sorry to hear your news. I hope now, some hours after you first posted, that you’re feeling a little more solid and have had some good hugs and support from friends and family. It’s impossible to get your head round such shocking news at first, but when there’s a medical plan, you can sort of get on board that and feel like there’s something you can do to fight back.
I don’t know anything about hormore treatments, so won’t try. Just to say come on here any time - you know your community of friends is always there for you.
With love
Jacquie xx
All I can say is good luck and send you hugs. I have had all the hormonal treatment, EC and now taxol I have bone mets and now liver) Despite this working on my lymph I have developed a liver met and new bone met. Can’t understand why it had worked for some tumours and not all. I am going down the road of Avastn/Taxol treatment but am having to pay for it myself as NHS won’t and neither will my private insurance. The important thing is to keep going, keep fighting, even when you feel sh**
Best wished to you
mills
Hi Tracy,
I have been on Capecitabine and Herceptin for a year for a 7cm liver met, 2 bone mets and and a tumour on my lymph gland in my neck and have had excellent results. The bone and lymph disspperared after 2 cycles and the scans show shrinkage every time! I think it works very well with Taxotere too.
Good luck with your treatment.
Love
Pauline
hi everyone , thamks for all your words , you dont know how much they all mean to me xx. jenny how did you get on with your results ? i am perking up a little now but am still finding it hard to accept the liver mets could of changed status to er neg and the bone mets stayed at er pos as there was no change in those .(had a chat with chemo nurse yesterday ) . i go in for steroids tuesday and start the chemo wed . my hair had just started to grow nicely , and eyebrows and eyelashes were just perfect again. grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.
thanks again Tracy xxxxxxxxxxxx
Tracy glad you are perking up a bit/// my hair is just doing nicely but have started the avastin /taxol which gives me another two wks to bald… must get a teacosy for the cold winter nights. I had the steroids and then did the all night partying… my OH gave me a lovely dAB walkman which I plug into my ear and get some sleep listening to the radio all night without disturbing him or hitting him cos he’s asleep and I’m not!
I am also having trouble with the liver meds as my liver feels like a very large boulder pushing on all my other internal organs… just hoping this mixture will make me a bit more comfortable… cos you cant forget about it when it is so huge…
Just off to bed why am I so tired then when I get in there I’m wide awake?
Gnite All
Hi Tracy,
I got ‘stable’ so can relax for a few months - but then it will be the same old anxiety again…
About taxotere/taxol, it may be worth asking if you can have the ‘cold cap’ as I know ladies who have used this while having these chemos and it has helped them keep their hair. I asked about it when I had taxol and they said ‘no way’ but others have received a different response. My hair didn’t go as quickly as it did on EC, and my eyebrows/lashes only really went right at the end. I’ve also heard of some good products for faking eyebrows etc. and when I can find the links, I’ll post them here. They are reputable brands but I haven’t used them myself, so this is just hearsay.
I’m glad to hear you are starting to ‘come round’ - hang in there!
Love Jenny
xx