HER 2+ suvivor -- 17 yrs and counting!

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jfrone
jfrone Member Posts: 11
edited June 2014 in HER2+ (Positive) Breast Cancer

I was diagnosed with BC in May 2006 at the age of 32. One of the reasons why I was so confident that I was going to be ok is because I witnessed my mother fight BC years earlier.  Right after my diagnois I got my mother's old medical records only to discover that she (like me) was HER 2+.  There was no Herceptin at the time of her diagnosis so her pathology report noted that her prognosis was "poor."  I am happy to say that after chemotherapy and a mastectomy, my mother is a 17.5 year breast cancer survivor.  After her initial bout with cancer, she never had a recurrence, and has been healthy and happy ever since.

 After my chem and Herceptin, I too am healthy and happy and I am looking forward to celebrating 5 years of being cancer free in May!

 Happy Holidays to my fellow fighters and survivors, especially those diagnosed as HER 2+.  I hope my mom's story of life gives you some confort.

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Comments

  • Estepp
    Estepp Member Posts: 6,416
    edited December 2010

    Thank you so much for sharing this.... as we get further away from any active treatment........ it get scarier... as you know.

    Thank you for bringing hope to us Her2+  girls..

    Blessings!

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  • Iamstronger
    Iamstronger Member Posts: 378
    edited December 2010

    LOVE YOU for sharing and congrats to you both!!

    V

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  • InTwoPlaces
    InTwoPlaces Member Posts: 354
    edited December 2010

    Congratulations to both of you Smile

    May I ask if you are taking any hormones?

    Taking Femara (in my case) worries me more than chemo, Herception and radiation combined.

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  • lago
    lago Member Posts: 17,186
    edited December 2010

    InTwoPlaces… I told my onc a few weeks ago I was more scared of ALs than chemo. Chemo is only 3.5 ish months for me. Als are 5 years!

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  • jfrone
    jfrone Member Posts: 11
    edited December 2010

    InTwoPlaces:  I am not taking any hormones. After Herceptin, I have not been on any prescribed meds. I am sure there are others here that can give some advice.

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  • Medigal
    Medigal Member Posts: 1,412
    edited December 2010

    Thank you so much for sharing the story of your mom and yourself about Herceptin+.  I have always lived with an inner fear because I am estrogen positive etc. and Herp2new+.  However when I was diagnosed, they only gave Herceptin to Stage IV patients.  I did have a lumpectomy, Chemo, Rads and now am on my 7th year with Arimidex.  However your post helped relieve my mine that even tho I didn't get the Herceptin, I still may be ok.  Thanks so much for making my Christmas better!

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  • shadow2356
    shadow2356 Member Posts: 393
    edited December 2010

    Thanks for posting this. Stories like these always help me. Merry Christmas to everyone!!

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  • jacksnana
    jacksnana Member Posts: 168
    edited December 2010

    Thanks so much for sharing your story.  I just finished Herceptin two weeks ago.  Although I was happy when I finished herecptin, I kind of felt like I was losing my security blanket, so reading your post is very encouraging.  I started arimidex in June and for me that was the big scary part of my treatment.  I am so happy to say that I have had very minor side effects, nothing compared to what I had feared, just some minor hot flashes and little bit of stiffness but exercise has helped a lot.  Thanks again, this is so uplifting!

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  • myesan22
    myesan22 Member Posts: 40
    edited December 2010

    Thank you for sharing this post. It is very encouraging to see that there are long-tern survivors with HER+ breast cancer. Congratulations to you and your mom!

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  • stlcardsfan
    stlcardsfan Member Posts: 466
    edited December 2010

    Thank you, Thank you, thank you for posting this!!!!!!!

    I have just completed treatment within the past 2 weeks.

    The Herceptin safety net is gone, and I hope to never have to deal with this again. 

    Congrats to you and your mom for many more NED years!!!!! 

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  • mmm5
    mmm5 Member Posts: 1,470
    edited January 2011

    Jphrone

    thanks so much for sharing such a positive outcome. Were you or your Mother ER/PR positive as well? And if so did you do anti/hormone treatment? 

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  • TriciaK
    TriciaK Member Posts: 362
    edited January 2011

    I did''nt think they tested for her2 back then??

     Glad to know your Mom is doing well though:)

    Tricia x

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  • areyoukiddingme
    areyoukiddingme Member Posts: 1
    edited January 2011

    Thank you! This gives me hope.  I've recently been diagnosed with HER2+ and have been really scared. I'm responding amazingly well to treatment and I'm looking forward to the days when I can post happy news like this.

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  • elenalb
    elenalb Member Posts: 8
    edited January 2011

    Wow, hurray for long term survivors, in spite of everything!  My hat's off to your mom.  I have a friend that is a 10+ year survivor, HER2+, but her second bout of BC had not metast. so they would not give her Herceptin.  She was given a 4% chance of survival!  Unfortunately, at the age of 75 she just suffered a heart attack and is (her words) "a ticking time bomb" from all the chemo drugs they gave her over two treatment periods.

     Because my MUGA went down severely (from a 66 in April to a 38 in November), my MD will no longer let me take Herceptin.  I was on it with Taxol weekly for 12 weeks, so I hope that's long enough.  I told him I was willing to risk "a chance" of heart failure to give my body the Herceptin it needed, but he's not going for it.  I made him send me to a cardiologst (I have Kaiser in CA) who did an ecocardiogram, which showed normal heart function.  So, I'm keeping my fingers crossed.....I don't really have anywhere else to go if I have a reoccurance.  Thanks for the positive story of your mom.

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  • Livelaughlove30
    Livelaughlove30 Member Posts: 3
    edited March 2011

    I have been on taxol and herceptin for about 2 to 3yrs. My doc wants to stop taxol since I am in remission and just keep me on herceptin every three weeks. Thoughts on this would help. By the way I have been a stage 4 metastatic bc patient for about six years now.

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  • Ready2Win
    Ready2Win Member Posts: 175
    edited April 2011

    Thank you for sharing this inspiring news. Congrats to both you & your mom.

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  • OtraVez
    OtraVez Member Posts: 82
    edited May 2011

    That's really good news. Congrats to you both, and thank you for sharing. 

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  • kd01
    kd01 Member Posts: 13
    edited May 2011

    Thank you so much for sharing this good news, Congratulations to you as well as your mother!

    I really hope you and all the other ladies fighting this disease could do what your mother has done! 17.5 years? WOW!! Smile

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  • Ghillie
    Ghillie Member Posts: 2
    edited May 2011

    Hi BC survivors, I have been reading your responses for several days and finally got the courage to post my condition. I have been diagnosed with HER-2/NEU status. Waiting for the FISH results. I'm scheduled for a lumpectomy in 3 weeks and was told to consider reconstruction surgery.

    After much reading I'm leaning towards latissimus dorsi flap with no implants.

    I'm so scared. I have not been able to tell my children and sister. I have been reading some of the comments that some member have posted but I still don't understand some of the language or acronyms being used.

    Next week I have to have an MRI and PEM test. Any feedback will be appreciated.

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  • jacksnana
    jacksnana Member Posts: 168
    edited May 2011

    Hi Ghillie,

    So sorry this is the place we meet, none of wants to be here for sure!  Have you already gotten the pathology results?  Once I knew exactly what type of breast cancer I had and what my treatment plan was it helped a lot.  A list of all the acronyms can be found under "Abbreviations for newbies - updated".   Just go to search and type that into the keywords.  You might get more response if you also start a new thread with more specific questions and concerns you might have.  This is a great place, lots of good information - both practical advice and emotional support.  There are some really knowledgeable folks here, a lot of them with the same diagnosis that you have. I think I've learned more here than I have from my doctors!!!  Lots of ways to handle side effects of chemo, diet tips, etc. 

    Hopefully you have somebody to talk to, it helped me a lot.  Everybody handles things differently, though, but you can always come here to express your thoughts, fears and anxieties, even let loose and rant if you feel like it!!  And some fun stuff, too!  So hang in there,  Everybody here knows how you feel!      Veda

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