Hello Nellie, I can only speak from dealing with my husband experience.

He was diagnosed at Mayo Clinic, Rochester MN in 1996 .. was monitored consistently through the years with blood tests and various treatments. In early 2014 we were told that my husband was now Stage 4 .. BUT that a new chemotherapy was going to be approved by the FDA that “could potentially be life changing”! WOW! We left telling ourselves “No doctor is going to use those words unless it really could be potentially life changing!

Well the Doctor did NOT put my husband on the new drug “Imbruvica 140mg 3 capsules 1x day” until November 2014 .. we figured he wanted to see what the side effects turned out to be etc.

For my husband Imbruvica has been wonderful! The lymph nodes in his neck that were VISABLE in his neck are GONE!! The doctor says he can’t even FEEL his enlarged lymph nodes anymore! NO .. HE WILL NEVER GO BACK TO STAGE 3 .. BUT it is now May 2015 and he is going really well .. going to grandkids sports .. we are traveling the world .. living our lives and having fun. What more can I say. NO ONE can say what tomorrow can bring .. but Imbruvica has been GOOD to us. I would at least ask your doctor if you are a candidate for it.

Good luck on your journey .. Hugs to you! Katherine.

Info on the drug:
http://www.fda.gov/Drugs/InformationOnDrugs/ApprovedDrugs/ucm385878.htm
On February 12, 2014, the U. S. Food and Drug Administration granted accelerated approval to ibrutinib (IMBRUVICA, Pharmacyclics, Inc.) for the treatment of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) who have received at least one prior therapy. (He had been on Rituxinab for six months and had not been effective) 11/14