Hello Rubyslippers,
Definitely, I agree with you. I would like to know after all the treatments if I am disease free. I am currently on hormonal therapies and inhibitor. But I don't know if I am cancer free. I can only be cancer free if no residual cancer cells are not found in my blood and bones. In order to know this, you need a scan to detect. Nonetheless, if such scan is available at the end of cancer treatment it will give the doctor precise information about the cancer patients if they need additional medications or is cancer free. I hope such scan will be available in the bear future. Hopefully thus will give cancer patients who need more treatments get the right medical needs and those who are cured don't need to take additional medications unnecessarily.
@judypark001 I don't know if there is a scan that can assure us cancer won't recur or spread, at the end of treatment. Maybe someone else can chime in. I have read here and elsewhere that there might be a blood test that is currently, according to my doctors, only being used for stage 4 patients to assess treatments but might someday be available for those of us who are waiting for the other shoe to drop.
Hello Rubyslippers,
Definitely, I agree with you. I would like to know after all the treatments if I am disease free. I am currently on hormonal therapies and inhibitor. But I don't know if I am cancer free. I can only be cancer free if no residual cancer cells are not found in my blood and bones. In order to know this, you need a scan to detect. Nonetheless, if such scan is available at the end of cancer treatment it will give the doctor precise information about the cancer patients if they need additional medications or is cancer free. I hope such scan will be available in the bear future. Hopefully thus will give cancer patients who need more treatments get the right medical needs and those who are cured don't need to take additional medications unnecessarily.
Yes, if only there was a scan .... Currently, there is none. Blood tests for cancer markers are not reliable and the Cancer Tumor DNA test is not 100% either. I read that 30% of BC patients will have a metastasis due to the body having resistance to the AI and Tamoxifen. Terrible odds. We can only do so much - I have cut out alcohol, most sugars, eating lots of broccoli, kale and supplements. On Exemestane.
Yes, if only there was a scan .... Currently, there is none. Blood tests for cancer markers are not reliable and the Cancer Tumor DNA test is not 100% either. I read that 30% of BC patients will have a metastasis due to the body having resistance to the AI and Tamoxifen. Terrible odds. We can only do so much - I have cut out alcohol, most sugars, eating lots of broccoli, kale and supplements. On Exemestane.
Yes, if only there was a scan .... Currently, there is none. Blood tests for cancer markers are not reliable and the Cancer Tumor DNA test is not 100% either. I read that 30% of BC patients will have a metastasis due to the body having resistance to the AI and Tamoxifen. Terrible odds. We can only do so much - I have cut out alcohol, most sugars, eating lots of broccoli, kale and supplements. On Exemestane.
Hi Rubyslippers!
My diet is like yours. I diet consists of vegetables, grains and seeds and legumes.
I workout with weights to gain muscles 2 days on weekly basis. I am planning to walk 15 to 20 minutes daily. Hopefully I can commit to this. I research daily in hopes to find any new medicines, vaccines or clinical trials. I found out cancer cells can start to mutate as early as 2 years into taking inhibitors and/or hormonal therapies. After two years, be diligent. Do self check and don't ignore pain related to bones and bumps. Always ask for ultrasound over mammogram. I only do ultrasound because it shows more. I heard a blood scan for cancer cell residual is in the works. Which is a good news but the price is very expensive. It needs to be FDA approved so health insurance can cover most of the cost. Until then, do whatever you can to keep yourself healthy. Btw, I'm planning to buy a mini treadmill. This way I can exercise while watching TV heehee. Keepnin touch. If I find any information that can help us, I'll share it. Take good care.
Hi Rubyslippers!
My diet is like yours. I diet consists of vegetables, grains and seeds and legumes.
I workout with weights to gain muscles 2 days on weekly basis. I am planning to walk 15 to 20 minutes daily. Hopefully I can commit to this. I research daily in hopes to find any new medicines, vaccines or clinical trials. I found out cancer cells can start to mutate as early as 2 years into taking inhibitors and/or hormonal therapies. After two years, be diligent. Do self check and don't ignore pain related to bones and bumps. Always ask for ultrasound over mammogram. I only do ultrasound because it shows more. I heard a blood scan for cancer cell residual is in the works. Which is a good news but the price is very expensive. It needs to be FDA approved so health insurance can cover most of the cost. Until then, do whatever you can to keep yourself healthy. Btw, I'm planning to buy a mini treadmill. This way I can exercise while watching TV heehee. Keepnin touch. If I find any information that can help us, I'll share it. Take good care.
Has anyone done 'Signatera' testing for residual disease? I just learned about this and they say even if your insurance declines it, they won't charge you. They take the slides from your tumor, create some special test, and then run that against a blood sample from you. They then retest you every few months. If its positive, its detecting a recurrent up to 18mo in advance. So it can give you an advance notice.
Hi Rubyslippers!
My diet is like yours. I diet consists of vegetables, grains and seeds and legumes.
I workout with weights to gain muscles 2 days on weekly basis. I am planning to walk 15 to 20 minutes daily. Hopefully I can commit to this. I research daily in hopes to find any new medicines, vaccines or clinical trials. I found out cancer cells can start to mutate as early as 2 years into taking inhibitors and/or hormonal therapies. After two years, be diligent. Do self check and don't ignore pain related to bones and bumps. Always ask for ultrasound over mammogram. I only do ultrasound because it shows more. I heard a blood scan for cancer cell residual is in the works. Which is a good news but the price is very expensive. It needs to be FDA approved so health insurance can cover most of the cost. Until then, do whatever you can to keep yourself healthy. Btw, I'm planning to buy a mini treadmill. This way I can exercise while watching TV heehee. Keepnin touch. If I find any information that can help us, I'll share it. Take good care.
Has anyone done 'Signatera' testing for residual disease? I just learned about this and they say even if your insurance declines it, they won't charge you. They take the slides from your tumor, create some special test, and then run that against a blood sample from you. They then retest you every few months. If its positive, its detecting a recurrent up to 18mo in advance. So it can give you an advance notice.
Thanks for the info regarding the 'Signatera' test, for I am really interested in this test. Could you please let us know whether we should contact that company directly or via our medical oncologist? If our medical oncologist does not want us to do this test, how do we contact "them" directly to do this special blood test?
Thanks in advance for your help:) Best wishes to everybody in this journey going forward!
Has anyone done 'Signatera' testing for residual disease? I just learned about this and they say even if your insurance declines it, they won't charge you. They take the slides from your tumor, create some special test, and then run that against a blood sample from you. They then retest you every few months. If its positive, its detecting a recurrent up to 18mo in advance. So it can give you an advance notice.
@lilacs777 as I wrote before, my doctors only use Signatera and other blood tests, for patients already diagnosed with metastasis, to measure effectiveness of treatment.
I am 10 years out and am mentally marking that anniversary with a wish for a check up but after a double mastectomy, none is offered. In fact, even though risk goes up for hormonal cancers as time goes on, I was discharged after my 5 years of letrozole.
That said, testing every few months after a primary cancer seems like an anxious way to live. As does too much focus on lifestyle management, but that's me. We are all different!
It seems that for stage 4, there is no concern about catching cancer early, on the part of the medical establishment. I don't know if early detection of stage 4 makes a difference: does anyone else know?
It is a tricky balance to stay vigilant but also put cancer on the back burner. Many of us never have recurrence or spread. I have not pursued any check ins other than a couple of hip x-rays over the years.
Thanks for the info regarding the 'Signatera' test, for I am really interested in this test. Could you please let us know whether we should contact that company directly or via our medical oncologist? If our medical oncologist does not want us to do this test, how do we contact "them" directly to do this special blood test?
Thanks in advance for your help:) Best wishes to everybody in this journey going forward!
I couldn't find a local oncologist that would order it for me, which was frustrating. Signatera requires it to be ordered thru a doctor, you can't request it yourself directly. However, Dr Funk (the one who famously did Angelina Jolie's BMX) lets you order through her site - pink lotus. I think its really amazing she lets patients do that.
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@judypark001 I don't know if there is a scan that can assure us cancer won't recur or spread, at the end of treatment. Maybe someone else can chime in. I have read here and elsewhere that there might be a blood test that is currently, according to my doctors, only being used for stage 4 patients to assess treatments but might someday be available for those of us who are waiting for the other shoe to drop.
Yes, if only there was a scan .... Currently, there is none. Blood tests for cancer markers are not reliable and the Cancer Tumor DNA test is not 100% either. I read that 30% of BC patients will have a metastasis due to the body having resistance to the AI and Tamoxifen. Terrible odds. We can only do so much - I have cut out alcohol, most sugars, eating lots of broccoli, kale and supplements. On Exemestane.
@thora902 I confess to having tea and sorbet every evening! Ten years out...
Hi Rubyslippers!
My diet is like yours. I diet consists of vegetables, grains and seeds and legumes.
I workout with weights to gain muscles 2 days on weekly basis. I am planning to walk 15 to 20 minutes daily. Hopefully I can commit to this. I research daily in hopes to find any new medicines, vaccines or clinical trials. I found out cancer cells can start to mutate as early as 2 years into taking inhibitors and/or hormonal therapies. After two years, be diligent. Do self check and don't ignore pain related to bones and bumps. Always ask for ultrasound over mammogram. I only do ultrasound because it shows more. I heard a blood scan for cancer cell residual is in the works. Which is a good news but the price is very expensive. It needs to be FDA approved so health insurance can cover most of the cost. Until then, do whatever you can to keep yourself healthy. Btw, I'm planning to buy a mini treadmill. This way I can exercise while watching TV heehee. Keepnin touch. If I find any information that can help us, I'll share it. Take good care.
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1 ReactionI try to be mindful too that stress is a risk factor!
Has anyone done 'Signatera' testing for residual disease? I just learned about this and they say even if your insurance declines it, they won't charge you. They take the slides from your tumor, create some special test, and then run that against a blood sample from you. They then retest you every few months. If its positive, its detecting a recurrent up to 18mo in advance. So it can give you an advance notice.
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Hug
1 ReactionHI Judypark - thank you for your input re: 2 years. Be well.
Hi! lilacs777:
Thanks for the info regarding the 'Signatera' test, for I am really interested in this test. Could you please let us know whether we should contact that company directly or via our medical oncologist? If our medical oncologist does not want us to do this test, how do we contact "them" directly to do this special blood test?
Thanks in advance for your help:) Best wishes to everybody in this journey going forward!
@lilacs777 as I wrote before, my doctors only use Signatera and other blood tests, for patients already diagnosed with metastasis, to measure effectiveness of treatment.
I am 10 years out and am mentally marking that anniversary with a wish for a check up but after a double mastectomy, none is offered. In fact, even though risk goes up for hormonal cancers as time goes on, I was discharged after my 5 years of letrozole.
That said, testing every few months after a primary cancer seems like an anxious way to live. As does too much focus on lifestyle management, but that's me. We are all different!
It seems that for stage 4, there is no concern about catching cancer early, on the part of the medical establishment. I don't know if early detection of stage 4 makes a difference: does anyone else know?
It is a tricky balance to stay vigilant but also put cancer on the back burner. Many of us never have recurrence or spread. I have not pursued any check ins other than a couple of hip x-rays over the years.
I couldn't find a local oncologist that would order it for me, which was frustrating. Signatera requires it to be ordered thru a doctor, you can't request it yourself directly. However, Dr Funk (the one who famously did Angelina Jolie's BMX) lets you order through her site - pink lotus. I think its really amazing she lets patients do that.
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
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