A weird question

dolittle

just thinking after watching these threads for several years...

Why is it that generally across all bc types most survive about two years (apart from bone mets)

Why can’t we get past this time frame?

Eliza

pajim

Hi Eliza, actually that's not true. The median survival (50% make it) for HER+ patients is about 4-5 years. At least it was in the Cleopatra study establishing the current treatment for HER2+ cancers.

http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1413513...

ER+ cancers do about the same. PALOMA-2 (the Phase 2 for Ibrance) had a median overall survival of 3-4 years. We're waiting for the survival data from the really big Phase 3 trial but it's taking a long time because women are living much longer. There isn't a reference for this because it's not published yet.

What this means is that 50% of women are living more than 4 years with this disease. But that there are also some aggressive tumors out there. Breast cancer is not one disease but a myriad of them.

All that said, I agree we all want it to be longer. Even better, a cure!

I hope your daughter is feeling somewhat better. . .

Lauriesh

I don’t think 2 years is the average. I think it is 3-5 years, at least. I think I saw an older statistic that said 25% make it 5 years and I think that is even higher now, especially for those her2+.

I am at 7 1/2 years with liver mets .

Lauri

dolittle

thanks Lauriesh and pajim

I am delighted to be contradicted.

Eliza

JFL

I heard the median is about 30 months based on recently published stats but those dates are always 5 - 10 years behind what is actually going on. There have been a lot of new drugs that have come out in the last 10 years, which has increased survival. I also think it is longer, given my experience with everyone on this board. Personally, I have had very extensive, aggressive liver mets from the start and am coming up on 3 years next month. My liver mets have volleyed back and forth between NEAD to comprising over half my liver, including nearly all of my left lobe, followed by NEAD again, rewind, repeat, etc. No major issues with liver mets yet even when they have been at their worst and quality of life is still great.