Hi all. I am posting on behalf of a family member. She has been on a few months of Ibrance (Palbociclib) + Fulvestrant for a stage 4 recurrence and has tolerated the treatment well. Tumor markers rose for the first couple months then started to fall. A couple weeks ago she had her first post-treatment PET scan and it revealed that most tumors were shrinking but a few were more active. Overall the Drs seemed pleased and presented the results as positive. Has anyone else experienced this or heard from others about what it could mean? I’ve done a great deal of research but haven’t been able to pull up much information, and would like to know as much as possible before we meet with the Drs again to discuss.
Hi
You don’t say where her tumours are but I presume they are soft tissue rather than bone mets?
I have had similar with lesions (tumours) in my liver which eventually turned out that one was a different receptor status than the others and therefore didn’t respond to hormone treatments. However as it’s early days I’d suggest her tumour markers are kept an eye one (I’m sure the onc will be doing this anyway) and have another scan 3 months from the previous (this also is quite usual to have them this regularly especially when starting a new treatment). Sometimes, or so I’ve heard, hormone treatments can cause tumour flares so it might be that the ones that appear unchanged or nonresponsive will respond .
If for any reason they don’t there are plenty of treatment options out there to tackle them, and not all are the same type of awful IV chemo that we all have for our primary and therefore have less side effects.
Nicky x
I have just been diagnosed with secondary breast cancer and told I have months without treatment and 2 - 4 years with treatment my new metastatic ER positive/ HER2 negative breast cancer not to sure what all that means as my head is all over the place and finding it hard to except as have young children I am terrified of dying and leaving my children behind. I was told my cancer is oestrogen based and feeds of oestrogen. I have some hope of living past the two years reading stories on this site. I have been told by family I have to cut out oestrogen as the oestrogen is feeding my cancer as they found a 5cm lesion in my liver which they said they maybe able to remove part of my liver with the cancer but they would have to make the cancer smaller and I asked would this give me longer to live if they could remove and they said no it would still be 2 -4 years to live that has left me very confused. my partner has been making me stews and sups but using pearl barley and has bought me loads of antioxidant mixed nuts with almonds pumpkin seeds cashew nuts walnuts brazil nuts to try and fatten me up and give me more energy as the weight has fell off me. but I have been told by family members that all these contain oestrogen that helps feed the cancer. I am so confused what to eat ? I had bone scan and MRI scan and waiting for results as had scans in February that came back clear and the cancer was only in my liver and no where else and was advised that if it has not spread then they maybe able to remove part of the liver where the cancer is and can only do this if the cancer shrinks I am on at the moment Palbociclib and Goserlin and Letrozole but been reading on Miracle cure saves woman with breast cancer given months. the woman was given months after trying 7 types of chemotherapy failed she had tumours the size of fists in her liver and after trying new treatment adoptive cell transfer she has been cancer free for 2 years. has anyone heard of this the article I found was teegraph.co.uk/news/2018/06/04/miracle-cure-saves-woman-breast-cancer-given-months-live/ as reading the article it says these trials may be a cure for terminal cancer ? I am hoping others have heard of this and could I be a candidate for it to do the trials. . I so please to read about yourself and so many others doing so well and would ask what changes you have done and any help or advise would be greatly appreciated. I apologise going on for so long its just all so overwhelming.