Oncotype DX® BC test predicts Late Recurrence 5 - 15 years out

cp418

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/oncotype-dx-breast-cancer-test-predicts-late-recurrence-five-to-15-years-out-2014-05-29

Oncotype DX® Breast Cancer Test Predicts Late Recurrence Five to 15 Years Out

New Data Presented at ASCO® Annual Meeting Suggest that Genomic Health's Oncotype DX Test May Help Identify Patients That Have the Greatest Opportunity to Benefit from Extended Hormonal Therapy

 

Jelson

thanks cp418 as always for up to the minute info. I called genentec to see what might apply to ME whose DCIS was diagnosed in 2009. What they have for DCIS is testing at point of diagnosis to inform surgery/radiation recommendations. The tests to id early bc patients who would benefit from extended hormonal therapy is not for DCIS, but for invasive cancer. I learned that if your tumor tissue has been kept by the hospital, it still can be used for this test. So, my understanding is that not only the newly diagnosed, but also those who are NOW winding up their 5 year tamoxifen or AI regimens and are pondering the pros/cons of continuing for an additional 5 years AND whose tumor tissue has been preserved, might benefit from this test.

farmerlucy

Thanks CP! That is excellent information. We are so spoiled to get all the latest news delivered to us by you!

cp418

Your welcome!    When I was dx in 2006 with 1 positive node the Oncotype test was only allowed for node negative patients.  I doubt it could be done at this time - but I always wondered.  I was ER+100%, PR+100%, Her-neg.  My Onc strongly recommended I stay on AI for more than 5 years, and I just finished 7 years on Femara and hope to take it for 10.  Whether it is fear or fate but I feel it has helped me so far.

besa

CP418- Great information.  Thank you for posting!

Heidihill

With 100% ER+ and bone mets, Femara definitely helped me--4.5 years long. Have been on Tamoxifen now for almost 2 years and still NED. Hope to stay on Tamoxifen several more years.

Anonymous

CP, thanks so much for this information.  I am also ER plus 100% and PR plus 100% and HER-.  Since hearing the information that you posted concerning the European studies encouraging longer time frames for the  the use of AIs if someone is ER positive, I am going back on Arimidex.  My onc likes Femara so may switch to Femara.  How are you doing on Femara?

cp418

Aug242007 - I just started year 8 on Femara (generic) and keep physically active with daily walking/exercise really helps me tolerate it well.  I was age 49 premenopause at dx and tried Tamoxifen for several months but could not tolerate the bad insomnia, depression, mood swings, bloated - worse than PMS for me.  So I insisted on oophorectomy to switch to Femara.  After 2 years, I developed osteopenia and received bi-yearly Zometa infusions for 3 years which put me back within normal range on Dexa scans.  Then this past year my right hip again showed osteopenia, so I had another Zometa infusion last month.  Recently I was dx with hypothyroid and started medication for that problem (Armour Thyroid meds).  However, getting my Thyroid back in balance really made a difference in how I feel - especially body aches!  Much less now!  My current struggle now is trying to loose a few pounds. 

Jazzygirl

Hi folks- appreciate this info. I had the OncotypeDX test to help with determining my treatment back in 2012-2013. I had an intermediate score and talked to two MOs about what they thought I needed. No benefit to do chemo with my pathology and score, and one MO said 10  years on the AIs, the other said five is the current standard of care, but also said more research was suggesting staying on longer (up to 10 years) was helping women to live longer without BC reoccurrence. 

I started arimidex in March of 2013 and I continue to worry about the impacts to the bones, as I was slightly osteopenic going in to all this but try to exercise regularly and will get another bone density test by year end. The MO following now says they have to weigh the possible reoccurrence risk against the concerns about osteoporosis when deciding beyond five years.

CP- I find it pretty impossible to loose weight on the AIs. I have since cut out eating sugar, reducing carbs and don't drink much to manage some blood sugar issues and even with that, not much happens. I did go off for a month last year due to bad SEs and my MO recommended taking a month break and then resuming to see if I could tolerate it better. During that month of no AIs, I lost 10 pounds. So these meds work against our loosing weight. I figure I have to exercise ALOT more to loose weight.

wallycat

Losing weight was very hard for me on tamoxifen and then arimidex.  I started questioning if I was eating in my sleep or something.

Within a month of going off the AI, I too dropped almost 10 pounds.  I still could lose 5 or so, but I was going out of my mind.  Speaking of mind, my biggest worry about the AIs is memory loss and the impact it has on brain health and what it can do to the heart.

I've second guessed myself on whether I should continue or not; my onco said my pathology (she felt) did not warrant 10 years and she said it is not a blanket treatment for everyone.

vbishop

Jazzygirl -

I, too, gained weight after starting on Arimidex - about a pound a week.  But it turns out my thyroid hormones are/were out of whack.  My oncologist said my weight gain had nothing to do with my AI meds.  Maybe, maybe not.  But now that we may have the thyroid hormones back in check, I am losing the weight.  Turns out the surgery took a major toll on my body and my thyroid hormones, per my endo doc.  You may want to see if a full thyroid panel would be helpful.

Jazzygirl

Hi ladies- I did not gain weight on the AIs,  but cannot loose any either. Right around the time I got the BC dx, I had a ruptured appendix. I lost 40 pounds with chronic diarrhea for a month and the surgery (plus I lost my appetite for months), but did slow gain some of that back. I had my breast surgery six weeks after my appendix surgery then radiation starting in January. So my body was put through the ringer! I started the AIs after finishing the rad treatments. Of course, my doctor suggested I drop some more weight to keep the reoccurrence risk down and it was only when I stopped taking it on the "month vacation" I lost another 10 pounds back down. My docs said it is very hard to loose weight on any of these drugs. I think they should tell people more like impossible!

And yes, each person has to be evaluated for the longer term. I too worry about the risks to the organs like the heart and brain as well as my bones. My MO said my BC was found early and is slow growing, and I have a pretty low risk of reoccurence. Because the Oncotype score fell in the intermediate range, he felt that was enough to warrant taking the AIs for 5 years. He said we re-evaluate as we go along here and as better info is available.

Vbishop- my PCP does a full thyroid panel every year and my annual physical is coming up so I will talk to her about it! My my mother had thyroid issues, especially after menopause and it is possible that could be a factor in all this. Thanks for the reminder to ask her to do this when I see her in July!

Appreciate the insights here!

wallycat

I think most thyroids are checked at least every other year when the CBC is done; mine was fine...was fine last year as well...it was the drugs.  Even with the horrible joint pain and the weight gain, I made it a month or two shy of the 5 year mark; my concern is anything longer.

I see some gals post that they had a recurrence even while still ON THE meds; so just like cancer, until we know more, we do the best we can without hurting ourselves long term.  It's a crap shoot.

Anonymous

I have been on Arimidex for 6 years, was off 6  months and now starting again since the European study and ASCO information surfaced..  I am the reverse of most women on the AIs in that I stay nauseated on Arimidex and do not eat so I lost weight.