Wish I had never,never done rads, DEEP REGRETS
Comments
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You could always get a second opinion right now while the damage and pain are so apparent. What does that statement even mean: “It only targets the area being treated?” Since when does nerve pain stop at an invisable border?
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Mvmoss,
As others have said: You can stop completely. You can get a second opinion. You can take a break.
They can recommend you continue. They may bully you. They may be mean and nasty. They may be sweetness and light.
No matter what, it's your body and your life.
If it were me, I'd listen to my gut. I'm not in treatment to make friends or please other people - as women, we are so conditioned to want to do those things. I do what I do to beat my cancer without destroying my body or my life.
Good luck.
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Please read up on cancer stem cells before deciding to quit! Unfortunately, stopping radiation before you finish can be like stopping antibiotics before you've finished, leaving the strongest cells to reproduce. I'm not saying you have to continue, rads screwed me. But at least know that stopping also has risks, which is why I didn't quit mine.
PS- They always say side effects “can’t be from radiation” until they’re proven wrong.
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Wondering if posters on this thread are aware of up and coming proposed changes to BC.org site. Here's a link if you want to inform yourself.
Are You Aware of/Concerned about proposed BCO thread changes?
GP
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Mymoss,
Meow13 and Feline are so right. They don't own you, YOU OWN YOU! They can advise you, should be fair and impartial, but they are your employee, not the other way around. I still regret having let them ruin my chest, complicate my reconstruction immeasurably. I have heart damage from the rads despite the "Breath Hold Technique" They Promised me they wouldn't damage my heart. Either they didn't know what the hell they were doing, or they lied.
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How are you Mymoss?
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Bump
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Reading the "real" stories of these warrior women, gives me another perspective regarding radition.Thank you
HB55
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Hi. Sorry I haven't been online in awhile. I cooked southern meal. Blackeyed peas, rice, roast and cornbread. I found out that I have a thickened tendon where the nerves exit the spine. Don't remember the name of it. The stretches helped and now that I can walk that is helping. It makes a popping sound when I walk. Guess athletes get it (that I'm not!). I think it's all related to the radiation. Somehow it changed my body's ability to deal with inflammation. Maybe the lymph system?? It's been a year since I had my lumpectomy. I still say that I will never have radiation again based on my diagnosis and age. I still have the ulcer but it's better. I'm drinking aloe gel and changed my diet. I also have a blocked liver bile duct that they are watching. Might have to have surgery for that but they are just doing MRI's every 6 months for now. The doctor said that there is a 10-20% increased risk for liver bile duct cancer with it blocked. They want me to lose some weight first. Thanks for answering my post. I'll try to log in more often.
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mymoss,
They also told me my rib and back pain could not be from the radiation. That is not true. I had radiation in May and got the rib pain the end of October. The Radiation Oncologist (the 2nd one I had and demanded because the first was incompetent) said it was "referred pain" because of the way I was sitting! Mine lasted 2.5 weeks and the pain was excruciating! I was bedridden with a heating pad. I had to hug a pillow when I got out of bed to go to the bathroom. I can't take NSAIDS so I had nothing for the pain and inflammation. Don't give up. Demand they do something. Here's the explanation. Show it to them!! "Aside from skin reactions and tiredness, there can be later side effects. Some women get costochondritis, a kind of arthritis that causes inflammation of the space between the breasts where the ribs and breastbone connect. The pain can be scary, and may lead you to wonder if the cancer has spread. It's easy to reassure yourself, though. Push your fingers down right at that junction; if it hurts, it's costochondritis and can be treated with aspirin and antiarthritis medicines. The pain will go away in a few weeks." from the Dr Susan Love Foundation.
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sdaniel, I have this pain in my back. My BACK! Because they burned me straight through to my back. I remember the color change of the skin on my back and I still have this knot in the muscles there that never went away, 4 years later. Every time I get a massage they notice it. It wasn't there before they fried the crap out of me. Mental defectives at Cancerland. They shouldn't have a license.
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I too am so sorry for everything you have gone through MacB04. I myself and struggling with pain in my left (radiated) breast. I had a lumpectomy, chemo and radiation which I completed July 2016. My breast is always sore on the inside. I've discussed it with my oncologist and she said it's something I will have to live with. It just doesn't seem right that I should get shocks of pain and it be "normal". Had I known that my implants would harden on the radiated side, I would have had them removed before radiation. Now, the surgeon says there is so much tissue damage to the radiated breast, that there is no way to have a reduction and replacement of the implant. She stated that most likely the nipple would die and the breast would not heal at all. It's very frustrating. I really thought I had done my homework and knew what I was facing.
Is anyone else experiencing this kind of breast pain? Is it something I should be worried about? Any suggestions on how to get my Dr. to listen to my concerns?
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Yes, I still have breast pain, shoulder and side pain on the whole breast radiated side two years later. At this point I don't expect it to get better, ever. So sorry Bonnie, that your options are ruined. Maybe a second opinion?
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Bonnie, be sure your pain isn't from lymphedema, which we typically think of as swelling in the arm. However fluid can fill tissues in your breast, on your side, in your armpit, on your ribs... and all of it can hurt. My own lymphedema seems to come and go and I have never figured out what makes it flare, but regularly, it does, and it aches so bad! Check out some of the lymphedema threads, so some reading, try some of the exercises. It might help. I can't hurt. Despite doing regular exercises for lymph, pain to a greater or lesser degree, is a daily companion since I started down this road. Radiation worsened my lymphedema, made my breast angry, and I think tamoxifen is making my joints ache. I am creaky like the tin man who needs oil!
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Bonnie, I had hardening of my skin,, it was horribly tight, TIGHT. It was also stiff and thick and inflexible, like BOOT LEATHER. That awful problem is caused by the enormously common disaster they never mention called Radiation Fibrosis. It is a ongoing situation of increasing fibrosis complicated by the severe loss of Circulation at the microvascular level. I am on Pentoxifylline 400mg three times per day/Vitamin E 400IU three times per day and I also apply a Prescription Compounded Topical Cream with Pentoxifylline 5%/Vitamin E 1%, once or twice per day to all the areas that were tight. OPERATIVE WORDS were tight. It is much better thsn it was. Bug one of those docs you have to look up the research and give this a try. It might help you, you won't know if you don't try. What do you have to loose?
This is just a small selection of the studies. Read up!
Randomized trial of pentoxifylline and vitamin E vs standard follow-up after breast irradiation to prevent breast fibrosis, evaluated by tissue compliance meter.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22846413
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19540105
Eur J Cancer. 2009 Sep;45(14):2488-95. doi: 10.1016/j.ejca.2009.05.015. Epub 2009 Jun 17.
Pentoxifylline and vitamin E treatment for prevention of radiation-induced side-effects in women with breast cancer: a phase two, double-blind, placebo-controlled randomised clinical trial (Ptx-5).
Also found info on treatment of Capsular Contracture using Low Level Laser Therapy to resolve or greatly improve it.
Reduce skin fibrosis & possibly breast implant contracture after radiation therapy: vitamin E & pentoxifyllineAug 1, 2011 Brian D. Lawenda, M.D.
Most patients typically develop only minimal skin fibrosis after their radiation therapy, however for those who have a more significant degree of fibrosis I often recommend a combination of vitamin E (400 I.U. twice a day) andpentoxifylline (400 mg, three times each day).
Fibrosis can develop months-to-years after radiation therapy to any region of the body, but is most common in theextremities, breasts (read more about implant contracture, below) and head and neck where higher radiation doses are often required on or just below the skin surface.
How does this treatment work?It is not entirely clear how these molecules work to reduce fibrosis.
Vitamin E may act as a antioxidant, helping to prevent ongoing free radical damage to the radiated tissues.
Pentoxifylline may be involved in blocking the molecular signaling pathway that is responsible for the development of fibrosis as a response to inflammation and injury. Additionally, pentoxifylline increases the flexibility and permeability of red blood cells which enables them to more easily bring oxygen to the tissues and carry carbon dioxide away. It is because of this mechanism that pentoxifylline is used in the management of peripheral artery disease, leg ulcers, strokes, high-altitude sickness, eye and ear disorders, and sickle cell disease and diabetic neuropathy.
Results of treatment:Significant improvement in pain, tightness, muscle strength, edema and range of motion have all been reported with this treatment.
It seems that the earlier that this treatment is started after the development of fibrosis the quicker the response, however this combination therapy is still effective (approximately 60-70% reduction in fibrosis) even when started many years after radiation therapy.
Have patience:It is important to recognize that this medication combination can take 6-48 months to achieve the best possible results. In one study, it took a median of 16 months to achieve a 68% reduction in fibrosis for those who started treatment within 6 years of completing radiation therapy and a median of 28 months for those who started treatment greater than 6 years after completing radiation therapy. Relapses were found to occur more commonly among patients who took this treatment for less than 12 months.
Duration of treatment:
- For severe skin fibrosis, I recommend that treatment continue for 3 or more years.
- For mild-to-moderate fibrosis, I recommend that treatment continue for at least 1 year.
As more patients undergo breast reconstruction (with eithertissue transfer/rotational techniques or implant prostheses), it has become more common in oncology and plastic surgery practices to have to address breast cancer treatments in this setting.
All patients with breast implants or expanders will eventually develop scar tissue (fibrosis) surrounding the prosthesis as a consequence of the body's normal immune/inflammatory response to a foreign body. This fibrotic response varies in severity among individuals, but it is estimated that up to 25% of women with breast implants undergo revision surgery (at 10 years) due to implant contracture (shrinking and or hardening of tissue surrounding the implant). Following radiation therapy, implant contracture rates are increased due to the effects of radiation fibrosis. (picture on left: This patient developed an implant contracture after radiation therapy to to her right breast and implant. The superior implant displacement and circumferential tightening are common findings.)
Although the rates or lower in women who select breast reconstruction with their own tissues (tissue transfer or rotational techniques), they are also at a higher risk of developing contracture and fibrosis of their reconstructed breast after radiation therapy to these tissues.
Vitamin E and pentoxifylline are being investigated as a prophylactic therapy to reduce the incidence and severity of implant contractures or implant loss after receiving radiation therapy to the chest wall or breast in the setting of breast cancer treatment. The results of these investigations will be important in helping us better direct our management of this condition.
Starting this treatment during radiation therapy is not recommended, as vitamin E may reduce the efficacy of radiation.
Bottom Line:Vitamin E and pentoxifylline is a useful therapy for patients with radiation-induced fibrosis. It can reduce the signs and symptoms of this condition dramatically in the majority of those who continue taking it for at least 6-12 months (or longer in cases of severe, long-standing fibrosis.)
The use of vitamin E and pentoxifylline following radiation therapy to reduce the risk of breast implant contracture and failure is under investigation.
If you think that you might benefit from a course of vitamin E and pentoxifylline, discuss this with you radiation oncologist.
The dosing is:
- Vitamin E (I recommend you buy "mixed tocopherols", as you want to include more than just the standard "alpha tocopherol" form): 400 I.U. twice a day and
- Pentoxifylline (ask your doctor for a prescription): 400 mg, three times each day
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Bonnie, I had hardening of my skin,, it was horribly tight, TIGHT. It was also stiff and thick and inflexible, like BOOT LEATHER. That awful problem is caused by the enormously common disaster they never mention called Radiation Fibrosis. It is a ongoing situation of increasing fibrosis complicated by the severe loss of Circulation at the microvascular level. I am on Pentoxifylline 400mg three times per day/Vitamin E 400IU three times per day and I also apply a Prescription Compounded Topical Cream with Pentoxifylline 5%/Vitamin E 1%, once or twice per day to all the areas that were tight. OPERATIVE WORDS were tight. It is much better thsn it was. Bug one of those docs you have to look up the research and give this a try. It might help you, you won't know if you don't try. What do you have to loose?
This is just a small selection of the studies. Read up!
Randomized trial of pentoxifylline and vitamin E vs standard follow-up after breast irradiation to prevent breast fibrosis, evaluated by tissue compliance meter.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22846413
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19540105
Eur J Cancer. 2009 Sep;45(14):2488-95. doi: 10.1016/j.ejca.2009.05.015. Epub 2009 Jun 17.
Pentoxifylline and vitamin E treatment for prevention of radiation-induced side-effects in women with breast cancer: a phase two, double-blind, placebo-controlled randomised clinical trial (Ptx-5).
Also found info on treatment of Capsular Contracture using Low Level Laser Therapy to resolve or greatly improve it.
Reduce skin fibrosis & possibly breast implant contracture after radiation therapy: vitamin E & pentoxifyllineAug 1, 2011 Brian D. Lawenda, M.D.
Most patients typically develop only minimal skin fibrosis after their radiation therapy, however for those who have a more significant degree of fibrosis I often recommend a combination of vitamin E (400 I.U. twice a day) andpentoxifylline (400 mg, three times each day).
Fibrosis can develop months-to-years after radiation therapy to any region of the body, but is most common in theextremities, breasts (read more about implant contracture, below) and head and neck where higher radiation doses are often required on or just below the skin surface.
How does this treatment work?It is not entirely clear how these molecules work to reduce fibrosis.
Vitamin E may act as a antioxidant, helping to prevent ongoing free radical damage to the radiated tissues.
Pentoxifylline may be involved in blocking the molecular signaling pathway that is responsible for the development of fibrosis as a response to inflammation and injury. Additionally, pentoxifylline increases the flexibility and permeability of red blood cells which enables them to more easily bring oxygen to the tissues and carry carbon dioxide away. It is because of this mechanism that pentoxifylline is used in the management of peripheral artery disease, leg ulcers, strokes, high-altitude sickness, eye and ear disorders, and sickle cell disease and diabetic neuropathy.
Results of treatment:Significant improvement in pain, tightness, muscle strength, edema and range of motion have all been reported with this treatment.
It seems that the earlier that this treatment is started after the development of fibrosis the quicker the response, however this combination therapy is still effective (approximately 60-70% reduction in fibrosis) even when started many years after radiation therapy.
Have patience:It is important to recognize that this medication combination can take 6-48 months to achieve the best possible results. In one study, it took a median of 16 months to achieve a 68% reduction in fibrosis for those who started treatment within 6 years of completing radiation therapy and a median of 28 months for those who started treatment greater than 6 years after completing radiation therapy. Relapses were found to occur more commonly among patients who took this treatment for less than 12 months.
Duration of treatment:
- For severe skin fibrosis, I recommend that treatment continue for 3 or more years.
- For mild-to-moderate fibrosis, I recommend that treatment continue for at least 1 year.
As more patients undergo breast reconstruction (with eithertissue transfer/rotational techniques or implant prostheses), it has become more common in oncology and plastic surgery practices to have to address breast cancer treatments in this setting.
All patients with breast implants or expanders will eventually develop scar tissue (fibrosis) surrounding the prosthesis as a consequence of the body's normal immune/inflammatory response to a foreign body. This fibrotic response varies in severity among individuals, but it is estimated that up to 25% of women with breast implants undergo revision surgery (at 10 years) due to implant contracture (shrinking and or hardening of tissue surrounding the implant). Following radiation therapy, implant contracture rates are increased due to the effects of radiation fibrosis. (picture on left: This patient developed an implant contracture after radiation therapy to to her right breast and implant. The superior implant displacement and circumferential tightening are common findings.)
Although the rates or lower in women who select breast reconstruction with their own tissues (tissue transfer or rotational techniques), they are also at a higher risk of developing contracture and fibrosis of their reconstructed breast after radiation therapy to these tissues.
Vitamin E and pentoxifylline are being investigated as a prophylactic therapy to reduce the incidence and severity of implant contractures or implant loss after receiving radiation therapy to the chest wall or breast in the setting of breast cancer treatment. The results of these investigations will be important in helping us better direct our management of this condition.
Starting this treatment during radiation therapy is not recommended, as vitamin E may reduce the efficacy of radiation.
Bottom Line:Vitamin E and pentoxifylline is a useful therapy for patients with radiation-induced fibrosis. It can reduce the signs and symptoms of this condition dramatically in the majority of those who continue taking it for at least 6-12 months (or longer in cases of severe, long-standing fibrosis.)
The use of vitamin E and pentoxifylline following radiation therapy to reduce the risk of breast implant contracture and failure is under investigation.
If you think that you might benefit from a course of vitamin E and pentoxifylline, discuss this with you radiation oncologist.
The dosing is:
- Vitamin E (I recommend you buy "mixed tocopherols", as you want to include more than just the standard "alpha tocopherol" form): 400 I.U. twice a day and
- Pentoxifylline (ask your doctor for a prescription): 400 mg, three times each day
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I hear you and I feel for you. I am having severe after-affects too and am being told things that make me think they think I am crazy. Mine isn't the burn but the mental state of fuzziness, absolute weakness. They didn't not tell me to stay in bed, they said I could resume my normal routine as soon as possible. What is wrong with these medical practitioners?
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actually it's best not to remain in bed. Do your daily activities as much as you can. Laying around all the time makes mental fuzzy and weakness worse. Same thing for chemo. Rest if you need to but you need to move after txs and surgeries.
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My God, what they put people through just cruel.
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Hello I had tchp five treatment s from September 18 thru December 18. My body and the bloodwork they do every few weeks demnstrates that my 65 year old body is struggling.massively to return to baseline numbers. What continue low are platelets..wbc.. hematocrit hemoglobin and several other parts of the blood analysis regimen. Yesterday April 3 Featured numbers going backwards. ....wrong direction. Not just climbing higher extremely slowly by tenths of a point but actually losing points and this is cause for concern. The p.a spoke with me yesterday about mds.. myelo dysfunction syndrome. I. Other words a secondary cancer..a cancer of the blood of sorts that can result from chemo drugs.. the tchp reigmen. I have been feeling weak a d fatigued for some time. I am also on daily radiation sin e March 12 five days per week. The three possible reasons for the stubborn of my bloodwork was given as follows yesterday:very slow return to previous levels causing pronounced anemia unknown cause;slow return to baseline complicated. Y daily rads;possible mds.i would like to know what folks thoughts are as to mds. Have you ever heard of anyone getting it secondary to chemo?is it usually a delayed onset...i.e. more delay than what I have experience d? (Last chemo December 18).iron is not being recommended because the cells are showing as having more than enough iron.some numbers comparing blood from March 20 to yesterday's draw:
Wbc:3.35 on 3/20 and 2.35 yesterday
Rbc:2.78 and now 2.64
Hgb:9.2;8.9
Hct:27.4; 26.5
Platelets 191;156
My oncologist is on vacation but will address this with me one week from today.a bone marrow biopsy would diagnose the MDS one way or another. I am extremely eager for feedback from the group on this issue. Than so much to all.
Michela
P
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I will just say that when I had Leucocytosis and Anemia (low white blood cells and low nu bers Red Blood Cells)occur during Chemo the nurse warned me to stay clear of sick people. Instead, I went back to my a Oncology Naturopath and got infusions of high dose IV Vitamin C. When I went back the next week my WBC and Hematocrit had increased to almost normal. My Oncologist was really cutting edge and was glad I didn't have to start on medications for anemia and low white blood cell counts. I had the high dose IV Vitamin C every 2 or 3 weeks during Chemo. One of the really great things about high dose IV Vitamin C is that it acts as a Pro -oxidant, and has actually been proven to kill all different kind of Cancer cells.
High-dose vitamin C makes cancer treatment more effective, trial shows
Published Fri 31 Mar 2017
By Ana Sandoiu
Common treatment options for cancer, such as chemotherapy and radiation therapy, can be expensive and sometimes ineffective. However, a new clinical trial tests the effect of high-dose vitamin C in combination with standard treatment on health outcomes for patients with cancer.
A new clinical trial shows that a high dose of vitamin C can improve health outcomes for patients who are undergoing conventional cancer treatment.
In the 1970s and 1980s, Nobel Prize winner Linus Pauling, together with surgeon Ewan Cameron, first hypothesized the clinical benefits of vitamin C for treating people with cancer.
Since then, further studies in animals and cancer cell cultures suggested that a high concentration of ascorbic acid might prevent and treat cancer.
More recent studies have examined the combined effect of high-dose vitamin C and conventional cancer treatment. Some of this research showed that patients who received the combined treatment had a slower progression of the disease, while others have suggested that the side effects of chemotherapy were less pronounced among those who also took high doses of vitamin C.
To obtain a high dose in these studies, vitamin C is usually administered using intravenous infusion. Vitamin C has a short half-life of only 2 hours in the human body, which is why it must be administered in high doses as a treatment.
A new clinical trial studies the effect of giving between 800 and 1,000 times the daily recommended dose of vitamin C to patients with brain and lung cancer.
The new research was led by scientists at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, and the results were published in the journal Cancer Cell.
Vitamin C passes human safety trial
As part of the human safety trial, 11 patients with brain cancer who were undergoing standard chemotherapy and radiation therapy were also administered three weekly intravenous infusions of vitamin C for 2 months, and then two weekly infusions for 7 months.
Each infusion raised the patients' blood levels of vitamin C to 20,000 micromoles (μM). The average level of vitamin C in adults is approximately 70 μM.
Overall, the treatment was tolerated well. The team noted very few minor side effects, such as dry mouth or rare and brief episodes of high blood pressure.
This safety test was the first phase of a series of clinical trials that will investigate whether high-dose vitamin C can effectively increase the lifespan and quality of life for patients that are being treated with chemotherapy and radiation therapy.
For now, the data from the phase I trial show that patients with glioblastoma survived for 4 to 6 months longer than the average survival time noticed in patients who undergo conventional treatment alone. Specifically, patients who also received high doses of ascorbic acid survived for 18 to 22 months compared with 14 to 16 months, which is the typical survival rate for glioblastoma.
For the upcoming phase II of the clinical trials, the scientists will examine the effects of vitamin C in participants with stage 4 lung cancer as well as in those with highly aggressive brain tumors, such as glioblastoma.
How vitamin C weakens cancer cells
The mechanism that might explain the potential efficacy of vitamin C in treating lung and brain cancer relates to the cancer cells' metabolism.
As a consequence of the faulty metabolism that occurs inside the cancer cells' mitochondria, these cells produce abnormally high levels of so-called redox active iron molecules. These molecules react with vitamin C and form hydrogen peroxide and hydrogen peroxide-derived free radicals.
Scientists think that these free radicals drive cancer cell death by damaging the cells' DNA. The free radicals are also thought to weaken the cancer cells and make them more vulnerable to radiation therapy and chemotherapy.
"This paper reveals a metabolic frailty in cancer cells that is based on their own production of oxidizing agents that allows us to utilize existing redox active compounds, like vitamin C, to sensitize cancer cells to radiation [therapy] and chemotherapy."
Garry Buettner, study co-authorCo-senior author Douglas Spitz also comments on the significance of the findings:
"This is a significant example of how knowing details of potential mechanisms and the basic science of redox active compounds in cancer versus normal cells can be leveraged clinically in cancer therapy," he explains. "Here, we verified convincingly that increased redox active metal ions in cancer cells were responsible for this differential sensitivity of cancer versus normal cells to very high doses of vitamin C."
If the approach proves effective in future clinical trials as well, the new treatment could also be significantly less costly than the standard treatment. To put this into perspective, 9 months of intravenous vitamin C treatment as part of the phase II trial currently costs less than one dose of chemotherapy.
"The majority of cancer patients we work with are excited to participate in clinical trials that could benefit future patient outcomes down the line. Results look promising but we are not going to know if this approach really improves therapy response until we complete these phase II trials."Bryan Allen, co-senior author
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Thanks for the info
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Bonnie, so sorry you are going thru thus. This forum was so helpful for me. I had a lumpectomy and accelerated radiation and had major swelling, redness and fibrosis. I followed the advice on this forum and finally after 8 months of pain got my RO to prescribe Pentoxifylline and Vitamin E for fibrosis, a referral to a physical therapist for massage and I also bought the lymphedema pad for my bra. She told me to wear the pad day and night, elevate the arm. All that combined helped in 4 months. Can’t hurt to try it. Please keep us posted. Hugs!
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Hello Felinemum,
I am blown away that they have not gotten oncotype scores and are talking about treatments, period. Oncotype scores are everything! I had three different MOs. First one plain sucked. Second one was ready to have port placement and start chemotherapy before getting oncotype results back. Third one, and best one, said that based on my oncotype scores it wasn't necessary to do chemo. He does want me to do radiation and estrogen blocker. The oncotype on my left side was 0 and on my right was 8. The oncotype tells them what the chances of recurrence are . He said that with chemo, it would bring my 8 score down to 5, and to go through chemo wasn't worth it. He had a lot of data to support this as well.
I worried so much about getting chemo for so long, only to find out that it wasn't necessary.
Please get that information ASAP.
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Gemini_gal: I don't think Oncotype test are given to hormone negative gals. I'm hormone negative and didn't get one. I believe it's because chemo is considered 'necessary' for us -- we really don't have any other options like hormone blockers (cause we're hormone negative).
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Even though chemo was not recommended for me given my low grade and stage, we did an oncotype because I declined XRT due to concerns about my musculoskeletal autoimmune problems, heart (have an intermediate risk cardiac calcium score and also would not be able to physically hold my breath for short bursts or do XRT prone), lung (have asthma) and the fact I was considering not even doing anistrazole due to worry about problems from that. I came out in the lower risk group, but the higher end of the lower risk, so MO said if I was not going to do the dreaded XRT I should at least try Arimidex, and we added Prolia as both an osteoprosis med and for bone mets prevention.
So far I have no regrets about not doing XRT. When and if my BC recurs not just locally is metastatic and Stage IV ( about a 8-10% risk of stage IV within 10 years per my oncotype) I may feel otherwise. Lots of gambling here to preserve quality of life.
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Chronic pain, please tell me you meant to type 8 - 10% risk of stage IV and not 810%! Those are some pretty lousy odds!
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Early detection does not equal cure but it does mean easier treatment for many women. For the most common types of breast cancer, early detection can mean lumpectomy instead of mastectomy, avoiding chemotherapy and less lymphatic invasion.
It bothers me that the national goal is for 70% of women to have regular breast screening, and we have never achieved that. Only 52% of B.C. women who “qualify" for screening had a mammogram last year. Mammograms miss many cancers, but they find a lot too and are the best tool we have right now.
We also need new detection methods to detect abnormalities in dense breasts.
I do not blame women who miss their screening. There is confusion and the reminder system is not effective. It is wracked with debate about false positives and efficacy which is really about cost-savings.
But better treatment is also desperately needed. I support both better detection and better treatment for all of us.
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Yikes and LOL, Runor! Thanks, I shall repair it
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Bellasmomtoo - thank you for the information. It's mind boggling how much information there is to learn when your diagnosed with breast cancer. Also scary. I have been reading the rad experiences and am now worried about that! Take care
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