scans after herceptin?

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connette
connette Member Posts: 33
edited June 2014 in HER2+ (Positive) Breast Cancer

I am wondering if anyone has had CT scans, bone scans, and MRI's after finishing herceptin.  I had my 6 weeks doctor's appointment and will be scheduled for these tests in the next two months.  I take herceptin weekly and just finished number 41.  I was fine with the tests until I came home and started thinking "why?" "What is the doctor NOT telling me?"  I'm stage 1 with no positive nodes.  I have myself really upset and can't control my thoughts.  If anybody can help me with information or actual experience, I would appreciate your comments.  Thank you and God bless.  Connette

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  • o2bhealthy
    o2bhealthy Member Posts: 2,101
    edited July 2010

    connette - my last herceptin is the 21st of July...also stage 1and no nodes but I have the opposit problem - my onc won't do any scans unless I am symptomatic...WTH???? I had no symptoms with my initial dx and I am really struggling with the wait until your sick approach.   I am looking forward to see what kind of responses you get.

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  • sheila888
    sheila888 Member Posts: 25,634
    edited July 2010

    connette....No i didn't have any scans after finishing weekly Herceptin.

    In the 6 months or so (mid Herceptin) i had muga scan to check out my heart function. Which was fine.

    Again this was 5 years ago. I don't know if they are doing things differently now.I had all those tests after my lumpectomy and before starting chemo.

    After i was done with Herceptin I continue to see my oncologist every 3 months instead of monthly. And Mammogram of course 6 months later.

    Sheila

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  • Sassa
    Sassa Member Posts: 1,588
    edited July 2010

    Yes, I had scans after finishing my herceptin; my onc scheduled one for three months after my end of herceptin for a baseline to use in the future  if I developed any problems. I am also Stage 1.

    Unfortunately, I got a false positive on that scan for malignancy (in my spleen, of all places).  That lead to a very stressful few weeks as I underwent a battery of more test and scans to determine the spot was a congenital malformation in the spleen (there since before birth).  Unfortunately, I kept getting hit with a new CT/PET scan every three months for a year to make sure that determination was correct (it was).  She now has me on every 6 month CT/PET schedule that she follows for her Her2+ patients.  I am now at 3 1/2 years post chemo, 2 1/2 years post herceptin.  I know at some point she will drop down to yearly scans; I don't remember when that point is.

    While on one hand, it is nice to get that all clear, it is also very stressful to keep undergoing scans and waiting for results.  At the time of the false positive, I had absolutely no symptoms and felt great, so the test result really through me for a loop and it was over a year before my anxiety level fell to the normal "what-if" level of any BC patient waiting for regularly scheduled follow up exams.

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  • good
    good Member Posts: 15
    edited July 2010
    Hi, Did you also have the serum Her/2 protein test?  I had one 3 months ago at the 5 and a half year mark.  The level was almost 2x as high as normal.  Had my first pet/ct scan which was normal along with liver enzymes,tumor marker.  All normal.  I will be repeating the her/2 blood test this month and have to wait 2 weeks to find out.  My DR. said if the test is the same , he will do nothing.  It the levels are higher...I don't know what is next.  More Herceptin?  I was on the Herceptin along with the chemo and continued for a year.  October will mark 6 years from treatment start.  Good
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  • Twinmom77
    Twinmom77 Member Posts: 303
    edited July 2010

    I feel the same as o2bhealthy - I'm a little scared at first that my doc doesn't do any regular scans.  But I figure if I don't have any scans, then I don't have the stress and anxiety all the time of waiting for results like Sassa mentioned.  I'm the type of person that doesn't handle stress well and I need as little of it in my life as possible and I figure stress would just make any cancer that might be there even worse.  At least that's what I'm telling myself!

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