How has chemo affected the outcome of your BC?

HollyinMich
HollyinMich
edited June 2014 in Chemotherapy - Before, During, and After

For some chemotherapy may be a choice depending on their diagnosis and for others it is a necessity. The list of side effects can be terrifying. Combine that with a recent cancer diagnosis that already has you terrified and you can become overwhelmed very easily. Everyone's situation is different and therefore the options presented to you are also different. Someone with Stage I may have no need for chemo. Whereas, someone who is Stage II may be advised to undergo chemo but is given more as an option to reduce reoccurrence as opposed to someone with Stage III that is told it is a necessity. With that having been said, I chose to start this thread to shed a positive light on the good chemotherapy can do. I'd like to see all the ladies that have completed chemotherapy share their stories as to how it has impacted their outcome in this fight for our lives. I hope that if these stories are compiled in one thread it will help someone in their own journey and decision making process and eliminate the need to wade through all of the numerous threads on this site, which can be a daunting task all on its own especially when newly diagnosed.  I apologize in advance if this has been done before, but I have not seen a thread like this and thought it could be useful.

This thread is NOT the place to chastise anyone's choice to undergo chemo, but rather share our stories. If you can't be nice then feel free to voice your opinions elsewhere.

My own personal story to follow.

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  • HollyinMich
    HollyinMich
    edited April 2011

    I was diagnosed at age 33 with IDC and Inflammatory Breast Cancer (IBC) in August of 2010. Having IBC automatically makes me a Stage IIIb. My biopsy showed angiolymphatic invasion, grade 3 tumor, HER2 positive ER/PR negative. I had axillary lymph node involvement that was palpable and visible in mammogram, CT and PET scans. No sentinel node biopsy was performed because the scans were all positive for involvement. I immediately began dose dense A/C the day after I met with my oncologist and had discussed my biopsy pathology reports with him. I had 4 rounds of DD A/C that I received every two weeks followed by 12 weeks of weekly Taxol and Herceptin that I finished on January 19, 2011. I am now currently on Herceptin every three week through January of 2012. Since I began chemotherapy as neoadjuvant (prior to surgery) I was able to visibly see and feel the difference the chemo was making. After the very first infusion my very swollen and red breast began to reduce in size and the redness began to turn brownish kind of like tanned skin. After tx #2 the redness was completely gone and the swelling gone as well. I had two IDC tumors in my breast. The smaller second tumor I completely lost track of during A/C. The large 4.8 cm primary tumor shrunk steadily and consistently throughout treatment. I had a bilateral mastectomy on February 18, 2011. Left prophylactic mx and right mrm with right axillary node dissection that resulted in 8 nodes removed. Post surgical pathology reports showed a COMPLETE RESPONSE to chemotherapy. No residual cancer cells remained in the primary tumor site, the secondary tumor was completely gone and no residual cancer cells in the axillary lymph nodes. My oncologist was bursting at the seams with the good news.

    I am currently undergoing radiation therapy. Even with the complete response to chemo, IBC has an extremely high rate of reoccurrence coupled with additional rate of reoccurrence due to my Her2 status. Radiation further reduces my risk of reoccurrence by 50%. The five months of chemotherapy were hell on my body but well worth the outcome. Having one of the most aggressive and deadly forms of breast cancer, chemo has given me the hope that I'll still be here to see my 8 year old daughter become a young woman, go on her first date, learn to drive, graduate high school, go to college and hopefully I'll still be here to see her get married and start a family of her own! I don't regret one minute of my chemo.

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  • mtndawn
    mtndawn
    edited April 2011

    I was dx with 5 cm of tumor, in two masses.  I also had biopsy-confirmed lymph node involvement.  It was a sore, palpable lymph node.  PET scan showed "several other" lymph nodes involved.  I don't know how many.  I started chemo 4 days after dx.  After 2 rounds of TCH, my onc could only feel "normal young breast tissue".  At the time of surgery, I also had a pathologic complete response.  I went ahead and did rads as well, since I was Her2 positive, and I continued Herceptin for the the year.  I did have to skip 2 herceptin infusions due to heart issues.  Other than that, I feel great!  Looking forward to my echo when I get cleared to start exercising again.  I believe chemo saved my life. 

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  • HollyinMich
    HollyinMich
    edited April 2011

    Mtndawn - thank you so much for sharing your story!  Congrats on the complete response, that's awesome!!

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  • fightinhrd123
    fightinhrd123
    edited April 2011

    Holly I have a friend who could write your post!  IBC, HER2, complete response, over five years cancer free now.  I too had neo chemo, complete response.  It is quite reassuring to hear from my Drs how great that is :)  I havent "seen" anyone with a neo complete response relapse yet.  I am very grateful for chemo!

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  • ProudMom_Wife
    ProudMom_Wife
    edited April 2011

    Thank you for starting this thread!!!!  

    I have one more chemo to do this Wed. and then I am done.  My treatment however has taken place after BMX, so I really will have no concrete evidence at this time on how it has affected my BC outcome.  So knowing that others have had a complete response gives me hope that my chemo treatment is worth it.

    Although I know there are no guarantees with my treatment, you give me hope.  Thank you! 

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  • InTwoPlaces
    InTwoPlaces
    edited April 2011

    I have no idea if chemo or the other treatments has worked for me. I think this is the toughest part, to not know.Undecided

    I can only hope it has (and so do my Dr's)

    I had lumpectomy, total Axillary node dissection, 4 DD AC, 11 weeks of Taxol, I will have 33 radiations and Herceptin for the rest of the year.

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  • HollyinMich
    HollyinMich
    edited April 2011

    Fightinhrd123 - Over 5 years with no reoccurrence is awesome and definitely gives me hope! Thank you so much for sharing that! So happy to hear that you also had a complete response too!

    ProudMom_Wife - Thank you so much for the compliment. That was indeed the purpose of starting this thread. With so many threads dedicated to the SEs of chemo, I thought it would be nice to have one that helps to show the light at the end of the tunnel. Some of the treatments are harder than others and if you are one of the unlucky ones that gets hit hard with the SEs it's nice to know that it pays off in the end!

    Hillck - So happy to hear that you also had a complete response and that you bounced back so quickly from the chemo!

    InTwoPlaces - I hope it has for you too!! That was the nice part of having the neoadjuvant treatment was actually being able to see the difference. I certainly have faith that it did do some good for you. I have the same feeling about radiation now. It's hard when you can't physically know for sure that it's doing something other than burning your skin, but I just have to keep the faith and know that I am doing everything possible to help prevent a reoccurrence.

    Thank you ladies for sharing your stories!! 

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