Breast Cancer Advice Center

Metastatic breast cancer...?My mom was diagnosed in 00 with stage 3 breast cancer,had her lymphnodes removed,numerous surgeries,chemo and radiation and was in complete remission.In 05 she was diagnosed with metastatic cancer in her lungs and started chemo but contracted a blood infection at the hospital during a procedure to put in a Hickman's catheter so she had to quit chemo for 3 months b/c the antibiotics they had her on were so strong the chemo wouldn't be effective.Three months after going back into chemo she was told she was once again in remission,only for the doctor to call back literally 5 minutes later and tell her that her test results came back and she AGAIN has more nodules in her lungs.More invasive chemo treatments were put it order.All but one nodule in her lung is gone,its not getting any smaller but not getting any bigger so they're keeping an eye out.Just in Feb. she was diagnosed with bone cancer in her hip. She just finished radiation last week and starts chemo very soon.Pls read details.... I know that no one here can tell me how long she has to live because I don't think God uses Yahoo, lol. She has been a very strong woman in the past 7 years working full time through all of her treatments. I know even though she puts on a strong front and acts like everything is okay, inside she is scared to death (no pun intended) and has to be wondering why it keeps coming back. My question is, how likely are the treatments to work to shrink all the legions on her hip? Being that it is metastatic and has gone from her breast, to her lungs, to her hip, it will probably just keep spreading. Does being on chemo really help cancer from spreading? It spread while she was on chemo the past 2 years, so does the chemo only treat the cancer she was diagnosed with in the first place? (ie: treated with lung cancer so it wouldn't treat the bone cancer...) We are all being very strong and support her in every way we can. *I meant diagnosed with lung cancer so it wouldn't treat th bone cancer.

In Metastatic breast cancer (Liver) .. my Complete Haemogram says " Alkaline phosphate 223 normal is 15-112 ;In Metastatic breast cancer (Liver) .. my Complete Haemogram says " Alkaline phosphate 223 normal is 15-112 ; SGOT 314 normal is 5 - 40 ; SGPT 141 normal is 5 - 40 ; GGTP 136 normal is 7 - 32;" what treatment i should take & the diet required

What is the best alternative treatment for metastatic breast cancer?it all started as ductal carcinoma of the left breast. it would now appear to have spread to the lungs, and probbly other organs and the bones. of late, what appears to be metastatic spread in the lungs would no longer respond or react to the drugs introduce as chemotherapy

Has anyone experienced metastatic breast cancer to the eye or known someone who has?If so, what was the course of treatment and where were the treatments given. Thanks. Peter

If a metastatic breast cancer sufferer has severe ascites (5 ltrs every 14 days) how long can they live? It is in the liver and elsehwere but is still termed breast cancer. Other than hormone tablets to help slow down the fluid build up and of course regular draining of fluid, no treatment is being offered.

Is there a cure for Metastatic breast cancer?

Metastatic cancer question...?I just found out last night that my mom was diagnosed yesterday morning with metastatic breast cancer to the hip. Her original breast cancer was diagnosed 1999. She had radiation, chemotherapy and surgery. In 2005, she was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer to the lungs. Near the end of her chemo, she contracted a blood infection which almost killed her. She had to stop treatments because the antibiotic she was on 24/7 through an IV was so strong she couldn't take her chemo at the same time, which in turn let more cancer spread in her lung. Since her first bout with lung cancer (minus the 3 months she was taken off for antibiotics) she has been on weekly chemo and herceptin IV drip once a week. I don't really know what I am asking here, but I'm just looking for some answers anyone has for anything she's been though. If she's been getting treatments for this long, and herceptin, which is a medicine to pretty much keep you in remission, why is it still spreading? She sees her doctor next friday and will find out then when she will start radiation.

Question about metastatic cancer...?I just found out earlier tonight that my mom was diagnosed today with metastatic breast cancer to the hip. Her original breast cancer was diagnosed 1999. She had radiation, chemotherapy and surgery. In 2005, she was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer to the lungs. Near the end of her chemo, she contracted a blood infection which almost killed her. She had to stop treatments because the antibiotic she was on 24/7 through an IV was so strong she couldn't take her chemo at the same time, which in turn let more cancer spread in her lung. Since her first bout with lung cancer (minus the 3 months she was taken off for antibiotics) she has been on weekly chemo and herceptin IV drip once a week. I don't really know what I am asking here, but I'm just looking for some answers anyone has for anything she's been though. If she's been getting treatments for this long, and herceptin, which is a medicine to pretty much keep you in remission, why is it still spreading?

(More) Metastatic cancer or just a coincidence?My mom has been fighting cancer for quite a long time now, originally diagnosed with breast cancer in 2000.Since then,it spread to her lungs in 2005 and her hip bone just this past winter.She did intense radiation in March and was put on stronger chemo drugs to fight it.(Has been on chemo,period, every week for 2 years straight now.)About a month ago,her right leg started hurting pretty badly.Her doctor said it was her sciatic nerve and was given everything from narcotic skin patches to muscle relaxers to help with the pain,along with physical therapy. It's been a month and the pain is worse than ever,limiting her to all but complete bedrest.She insists it is arthritus or a disc in her back giving her trouble,but my sister and I are afraid the cancer has spread to her spine.She cannot stand or sit in a chair for more than 2 minutes at a time, and has to lay flat on her back in order for the pain to be bareable.The pain in her hip was never this severe,so I am not sure what is wrong... Would bone cancer be causing this much pain? And can it spread so quickly they cannot catch it?She's been on chemotherapy since 2005 and the cancer spread from her lungs to her hip while on treatment, so it wouldn't be suprising if it spread again.I am afraid I know the answers to all these questions,but am looking for other's opinions or experiences.Thank you so much in advance. I made a typo. The pain is bareable laying flat on her stomach, not her back. (Not sure if that changes anything.) My mom is only 53 years old and NOT ready to give up. She has been working full time for years now and doesn't want to let this stop her. She worked 40 hours a week through her first chemo and radiation in 2000, and as much as she could after having her lymphnodes removed. She is off work until the pain is gone-period. Right from her cancer doctor's mouth. She won't just give up and wait to die, and that's what's really hard for her.

How do I tell cancer patients about a side effect of gemcitabine chemotherapy called "TMA"?For anyone who may use gemcitabine chemotherapy, brand name: Gemzar, which is used to treat metastatic breast cancer, ovarian, lung, pancreatic, and other cancers. I started a yahoo group with info and medical journal articles on a little known side effect called TMA that is deadly but preventable and treatable. http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/Gemcitabine_induced_TMA My mother lived for six years after being diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer. She still had a good quality of life, and required only a relatively low dose of pain medication. She didn’t die of her cancer, but of a little-known side effect of her chemotherapy, gemcitabine-induced TMA. This side effect occurs more frequently than thought, and is diagnosable and treatable. All gemcitabine patients should now monitor for gemcitabine induced TMA, especially older women who are having difficulty tolerating gemcitabine, like my mother. How can I share this information with the people who need it? There are dozens of articles about this on pubmed. There is no simple definition of the problem to search for. If you search pubmed.com for "Gemcitabine" together with "thrombotic" or hemolytic or vascular toxicity or TTP or HUS or TMA, you will find dozens of articles. One recent article by Izzedine et al. reviews previous literature on the subject, and gives info how to monitor for this side effect. Another article on TTP and plasmapheresis by Vesely et al. shows how to treat it. The highest rate reported is 2.2%, however this may be higher as doctors may not be diagnosing it at all. One article cited in the Izzedine article reports 29 cases in one institution alone. The belief that this is so rare is part of the problem. Doctors are not aware of it, are not looking for it and don't know how to treat it. That is why patients on gemcitabine should be made aware of it as soon as possible, so they share this info with their doctors and know what to look for themselves. It would be sad if there are patients unnecessarily dying from a treatable side effect that is never diagnosed, and the death attributed to their cancer, whether it is years, or a year or only a day of quality life that is unnecessarily taken away. Some percentage of gemcitabine patients, 2 or more out of every hundred, develop a side effect called TMA or TTP or HUS that is deadly if not diagnosed and treated. This TMA side effect is diagnosable, and treatable to full recovery (of the TMA side effect, not of the cancer). Gemcitabine has been used in thousands of patients. Copies of these articles are available at my yahoo group: Humphreys et al., Gemcitabine-associated thrombotic microangiopathy. Cancer. 2004 Jun 15;100(12):2664-70. Izzedine, et al., Gemcitabine-induced thrombotic microangiopathy: a systematic review. Nephrol Dial Transplant. 2006 Nov;21(11):3038-45 Walter et al., Gemcitabine-associated hemolytic-uremic syndrome. Am J Kidney Dis. 2002 Oct;40(4):E16

How to find cancer rates?Does anyone know how you would go about finding out if the cancer rates in your area are abnormally high? Where would I go? What if I don't want to know if just ONE certain type is high where I live, but look at all different types and different age groups? It seems like where I live, people everywhere are finding out they have cancer here and there. My own mother passed away due to metastatic breast cancer 2 years ago, and my best friend has now lost both her mother and father to cancer. i think it is weird....is cancer really this bad everywhere anymore...or just where I live? Just looking for #'s I guess...wondering if anyone even studies these things, or cares if certain towns seem to be "hot spots"?

Please answer... gr8 aunt dying of cancer?my great aunt is very sick and has cancer. She has been like a grandmother to me my whole entire life, and i can't imgine what its going to be like without her, and i just don't know how to deal with it all. And worst of all, now i rarley see her, and no one in my family talks about it and no one tells me whats going on. :( btw its metastatic breast cancer and she can't get better... :'( how do i deal with it????

Who wishes to help me to help my daughter heal herself of cancer?She has metastatic breast cancer that has moved to her lungs and been treated and and shrinking in her lungs but now moved into the brain possibly. I will answer questions about her health and our relationship. I just want her to heal...<tears> Pleeeeeeaase!

Please answer: gr8 aunt has cancer...?My great aunt and I are very close (she is like another grandmother to me) and she has been diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer, and isn't getting better. Also I know she prob. won't make it and I don't know how do deal with it, any advice??

How long should a 50 yr old woman having breast cancer 10 yrs back continue letrozole 2.5mg ?My mother had breast cancer 10 yrs back. It was metastatic which spread upto the axilary lymph nodes. She had her surgery followed by radiotherapy and chemotherapy. After that she was on tamoxifen for three yrs. She is now OK. But doctor has suggested her to continue taking femara (letrozole 2.5mg). She is now on femara for more than 1 yr. But how long she should continue femara?

Edwards - running with a dying wife, a doctors perspective...?How do you feel about Edwards running when they know her time is limited? According to them, she has metastatic (stage 4) breast cancer. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Edwards I have cared for many patients with metastatic cancer, and their time is unfortunately quite limited. From UpToDate (a respected review of the latest clinical data, written and edited by experts in each field: "Prolonged survival — Despite the disappointing cure rate, treatment prolongs survival in women with metastatic breast cancer. The average survival duration for women treated for metastatic breast cancer has improved over the last 20 years [2,3], and is approximately 24 months" http://patients.uptodate.com/topic.asp?file=cancer/5162 I feel horrible for anyone with cancer, and I think it takes a lot of courage to face cancer every day. But does anyone have any concerns with her husband running? What do you think?

My father has Metastatic Prostate Cancer with mets to the Bone.Its all throughout his spine/pelvis/shoulders?breast bone.He currently is receiving Radiation therapy to help with pain...I guess once it spreads to the bones it's very painful...How long does he have to live???

Will you donate your wedding dress to help people in need?Your wedding dress deserves a happy life too? Right? But it sits in your closet, waiting to be eaten by bugs or fire or rejected by your daughter because the dress doesn't have a wireless hook-up thingy to regulate body temperature (standard in yr 2025). Making Memories is a non-profit organization founded for the express purpose of granting memory-making events and last wishes to women and men who suffer from metastatic breast cancer. Making Memories is able to grant these wishes by selling wedding gowns that have been donated by manufacturers, bridal shops and individuals at our events called "Brides Against Breast Cancer" across the nation. Please visit www.makingmemories.org and see the wishes we grant with the proceeds of our wedding gown sales. Your donation and shipping costs are tax deductible. We'll love an appreciate your dress and you'll have more room for shoes.

How much does a low venous oxygen saturation affect judgement?When brought to the ER with liquid in her lungs (pleural effusion as a result of terminal metastatic breast cancer) my late wife's venous oxygen saturation was measured as 46% (as recorded on hospital file). Just then, in my absence, a relative got her to sign a will and now claims it's valid. Less than two days later she died, but had time to tell me that she shouldn't have signed anything when she was feeling so 'agitated'. I calmed her, telling her I would take care of it, and not to worry. Does anyone out there have the medical know-how to tell me whether I am well founded in contesting the will, and that its worthwhile (despite my state of bereavement) to start looking for lawyers and expert witnesses? A note for "biomed": You may have jumped to conclusions - as father of our infant daughter, I have to make sure that her mother's bequethment to her is protected. As much as I would just like to say 'to hell with this head-ache', I am motivated by parental responsiblity, rather than greed, to find a just solution.

What are the cuases of hypertension in postop patient especially in mastectomy?the patient is just returned from the the recovery room following a right radical mastectomy. has a history of metastatic breast cancer and a left mastectomy. has a history of type 2 diabetes mellitus(non insulin dependent) which is managed with oral hypoglycaemic. has a history of hypertension and managed with antihypertensives so wht are potential implication for patient's hypertension? wht could be causing patient's BP high and why? and the management of hypertension

Calculation of Doses- patient parameters?The dose of Taxol in metastatic breast cancer is 135 to 175 mg/m^2 by intravenous infusion over 3 hours. Calculate the number of milligrams of the drug infused every 15 minutes to a patient measuring 60 in. in height and weighing 120 lb in the maximum dose in the dosing range is administered.

How many times can a person go thru chemotherapy??My mother had a radical mastectomy approx. 18 years ago and went thru chemo (green fluid at the time), about 3 to 4 years ago, she was diagnosed w/metastatic breast cancer and received chemo again (red fluid this time). Her tumor count went below 30 for 2 1/2 years now and it just spiked to 80 recently.

How to i deal with it?my great aunt has metastatic breast cancer and has had it for 1.5 years and people with that live on average 2 years, how do i deal with the fact that i might lose her very soon. ?

How to make my friend regain her faith???My best friend has in the last 5 yrs, lost three babies to miscarriage. Had a pulminary embolism, lost one ovary, found out end of last year her mother has breast cancer, her g'ma in law died suddenly, and now her mother in law is battling a metastatic kidney cancer, (they are still running tests to find all where it spread). We have been discussing whether we believe there is a God, and why he would do these things. But I am running out of hope that I will convince her to retain her faith. She says she asks for people to pray, but doesn't know if she believes there is a God, b/c he has been 'punishing' her so much. Thank you for any insight. ;)

The Day the FDA Took a Cancer Cure Away :?