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A little update & a couple questions What is this ?

 
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Cathy9887
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Joined: 24 Jul 2008
Posts: 5
PostPosted: Tue Oct 14, 2008 1:30 pm    Post subject: A little update & a couple questions Reply with quote
My mom was diagnosed with Stage IV in July & has been doing Gemzar & Tarceva since about mid-August. So far, she hasn't had many (if any) side effects from the Gemzar. The Tarceva makes her skin peel in some spots & gives her a rash here & there - but they say that's normal. Her CA-19 was 202 about a month before she started chemo & when it was tested a month ago, the Dr said it had gone up just a little. He also said we really couldn't use the first CA-19 numbers because they were so far prior to the chemo treatments. Tomorrow we have a follow up appt with her oncologist & may get her most recent results. I'm SOOOOO hopeful that we get positive news!! Poor guy... we all have LOTS of questions for him.

I guess my biggest question is what makes one treatment more aggressive than another? Why isn't there a "cure-all"? I realize the thought of a cure-all is pretty much me living in a dream world, but it just seems very odd to me that there isn't a more standard drug being used. Why does one doctor think THIS is the best, and another doctor has a completely different protocol??

What kind of protocol are you/your loved one on? Like I said, Mom's on Gemzar (3 wks on/1 wk off), and Tarceva (daily pill). If there's something else out there that's more aggressive, we want to be signed up!!! Smile

Thanks... and lots of prayers to all of you & your families!!

Cathy
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Billusa
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Joined: 06 Oct 2008
Posts: 16
Location: Dallas, TX
PostPosted: Thu Oct 16, 2008 3:24 pm    Post subject: Re: A little update & a couple questions Reply with quote
Gemzar is the standard protocol of care for PC when you have stage IV. It can be given along with a choice of additional drugs, like the Tarceva your Mom is gettng, to aid in the fight. From a statistical view, they all have pretty much the same effectiveness, which is not very good, unfortunately.

You may want to investigate clinical trials and diet changes. I have some of what I am doing in another thread that is shadowed here. Best of luck!
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