I’m coming towards the end of my 18 Herceptin treatments and am feeling quite apprehensive. I feel fairly safe at the moment but know I will be terrified that the cancer will come back once I’ve stopped treatment. Does anyone else share this fear?
Yes and ive only had 2 herceptin so 16 to go but its a very real worry. I think we will all feel better when the herceptin results are out and we get a better picture of what is going on with it and how well it really is working.
Nobody can say for sure whether herceptin will work for them. For me I believe it has (up to now) I am never complacent. Large 4.5 cm tumour 4 lymph nodes involved and vascular invasion…and whoooppeeee still here 4 years and three months on…we all know this can change but 'seize the day ’ love to you all xxxxxxx
I asked my Onc, how would I know if the Herceotin had worked. he said, if I am still alive and well in 10 years time, it will have worked!!!
I have No. 5 next week
I agree with Eileen. I finished Herceptin in April 2008, here I am 3 years on still fit, well and enjoying a lot of new challenges. I had a 33mm stage 3 tumour, which the surgeon said was very aggressive; also 1 lymph node out of 22 involved. Herceptin just got approval for early stage BC shortly after my diagnosis. At the time my oncologists told me I had a low to moderate chance of recurrence.
However, like Eileen I’m never complacent and I do try to take care of myself with healthy diet, gym etc. I was on a course for my business today and I met a man who’d had cancer a couple of years ago. He was waiting for voluntary redundancy and was glad about it as he’d laid down the foundations for a nice small business from a weekend hobby of his. I really find it cheering when I meet others affected by cancer who have great enthusiasm for the second chance they have been given. Sadly, another person I know who had bowel cancer last year has a fantastic prognosis (better than mines), but has given up on life completely. The surgeons have told her she will stay healthy if she loses a lot of weight, but she just doesn’t heed them. I keep telling her not to waste the chance, she retires next month and could have such a nice time.
I too feel very anxious about finishing herceptin I have one more to go then that’s it. I know treatment has to come to an end at some point but I feel safe whilst having it. Does this awful fear of the cancer returning ever go away?
Love and best wishes to all you ladies out there.
Karen
The HERA 2-year arm results are due out this year so we’ll be able to compare 12 vs 24 months Herceptin over a 5-year follow up period.
The 2-year arm data was due out a while back. There are 2 schools of thought as to why it wasn’t published. The first says there was no difference, so they preferred to keep it quiet for financial reasons, especially for the US market where quite a few non-mets people get it long term. The other viewpoint is that it’s possible that there is no good data YET. That is, at the 2/3 year point there was no difference but after 5/8 years, there might well be. I think Tamoxifen showed similar data…taking it for a few years had little effect, but taking it for 5 years yielded impressive results for our ER+ sisters.
Anyway, I read that it’d be available this Spring. One thing’s for sure though, even if it DOES indicate a benefit to longer term use, we are going to have a hell of a job getting the NHS to extend the 12 month protocol. In fact, I suspect they are hoping that the current 6 vs 12 month trial shows the former to be just as good. In NZ they adopted a 3-month protocol, after the FinHER study showed 3 months was as good as 12. The sample numbers and follow up period were poor though; there was uproar there about it.
If it does show more is better, I vote we head up to London en masse for a bit of railing-chaining ;-)).
My padlock is at the ready, just say where and when.
I’m due to start Herceptin after chemo, which for me starts on 10th March, so my Herceptin won’t be starting until the summer. I will keep a VERY close eye out for those results!
Yes, me too. I am on HER+++ and ER + as well. I have had three out of the 18 herceptin.
There is some good info about after your treatment is finished. I will try and find the link,
Tracey
Hi Nerak,
Found it!
cancercounselling.org.uk/northsouth/extra4.nsf/WebResHarvey?OpenView&ExpandAll&Count=500
Hope this helps, it is nicely written,
Tracey x
Thanks Tracey for the link. I will check it out. I wish you well.