newly diagnosed triple positive

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bevaschia
bevaschia Member Posts: 2

HI. I'm Bev. I was diagnosed Aggressive invasive ductal carcinoma Grade 3 -nottingham score of 8 on July 13th. I'm ER/PR/HER2 positive. I took my first chemo on the 31st. Scheduled for the next on August 21st. Chemo consists of herceptin, perjeta and taxotere. I made it through the first one ok, but nervous about the second chemo and the next two that follow after that. I am assuming they will get tougher each time. Surgery will be after this first cycles of chemo, then another series of chemo after surgery. Pathology report indicates Ki-67 IHS score unfavorable with >70% what does that mean?

Is being triple positive easier to treat than other breast cancers? So scared!

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  • Moderators
    Moderators Member Posts: 25,912
    edited August 2015

    Hi Bev-

    We want to welcome you to our community here at BCO. We're sorry for what brings you here, but we're glad you've found us, and hope you find the support you need!

    Triple positive cancer means you have a large array of targeted therapies to try, so that's good! The Ki-67 score measures rate of tumor growth, and while your score does sound high, you've already started treatment, so you're already doing what you can to fight that. We know it's all scary and confusing right now, but hopefully it starts to feel like you've got a bit more control soon.

    We're thinking of you!

    The Mods

  • Suladog
    Suladog Member Posts: 952
    edited August 2015

    Beva,

    I'm also triple +, and I too had a high volatility rate....I also had a high volatility rate 25 yrs ago when I had another primary breast cancer and I'm still here! I asked my MO about that volatility thing and all of my doctors said it's not the main thing they use for treatment decisions and in fact no one is quite sure what it really means in the whole picture and many places don't count it that strongly as it's only one factor in treatment decisions.

    Triple positive as you know always means chemo mainly for the HER2 protein over expression and there are many drugs used for this type of cancer. My doctor who is co director of the cancer center at UCSF said that triple positive is very treatable because there are so many drugs they have for HER2 and they have even more in the pipelin, not to mention all the hormonal drugs and AIs out there, so that's a good thing. One of my MOs told me that if she ever gets breast cancer she hopes its TP as there are a lot of options there. Last time around I was Triple Negative and once chemo was over I really wished there was something I could take as some sort of preventative. There are many women here in the Triole Oositive forums who can offer all sorts of advice and support, come join us at the Triple Positive board


  • Moderators
    Moderators Member Posts: 25,912
    edited August 2015

    Great advice, all! Thanks for helping out this newbie -- you're all the best!

    Bev -- there's also a great group going through chemo along with you -- join the August 2015 Chemo Group thread to discuss with others their experiences with chemo.

    We hope this helps! Please keep us posted on how you're doing!

    --The Mods

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