My mom has Stage IV Breast Cancer

momscaregiver825

My mom was diagnosed with stage IV breast cancer in April 2007; the cancer is also in her lymph nodes, spleen, liver and bones. She underwent a hormonal chemo treatment and it was successful in destroying the cancer. She was then on Femara for six months; in February the  Femara stopped working and the onco tried Falsodex, Gemzar, Taxol and the lastest Xeloda.

She was on her third round of Xeloda (3,000 mg. per day) when the diarrhea started and her hands which were turning very dark started to bother her with a constant itching. This past Monday she was admitted to the hospital because her potassium level was extremely low and she had diarrhea since Thursday. She had been on the BRATS diet with no results. She came home on Friday and today she looked much more like herself.

The onco told us he could reduce the Xeloda to 2,000 mg or try another type of chemo.  She has decided she will not take the Xeloda. We see him on the 3rd and I would like to know if anyone has tried a treatment that you can recommend for me to research prior to her appointment.

nash

My Stage IV mom was on various chemos for five years, so we went through them all. Some of the ones she was on that it doesn't look like your mom has had were Navelbine and Ixempra. Your mom could also try Taxotere or Abraxane, which are both taxanes like Taxol, but which work slightly differently. You could also add Avastin to one of the chemos, which might be good b/c of her liver and spleen involvement (Avastin blocks off the blood supply to the tumors and is effective in gut related cancers).

Has she tried Tamoxifen? I know she's postmenopausal and the AI's are supposed to be more effective, but it's worth a shot.

I would also recommend trying the lower dose of Xeloda before abandoning that chemo. It's easy to adjust how many pills one is taking, and a reduction in dose is often all that's needed to get the side effects under control. 

Good luck to both of you--I know how tough this is. My mom's cancer was always harder on me than my own cancer. 

momscaregiver825

Thanks nash, I appreciate the information. Unfortunately my mom is adamant about no more Xeloda. No she hasn't been on tamoxifen; I will look into and discuss with the onco.

nash

You're welcome. I also forgot to mention Doxil, which is a form of Adriamycin, as an option. Also, Carboplatin or Cisplatin can be combined with various chemos.

Keep us posted on what the onc suggests to try next.