Folfox and Avastin

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gasman49
gasman49 Member Posts: 10
edited March 2014 in Colorectal Cancer #1
Hi, my husband just completed round 2 with 10 more rounds of Folfox and Avastin and then he is scheduled for 12 rounds of just Avastin. He is stage 3, T3,N2 (six nodes involved). He had his appendix, part of his colon and part of his small intestine removed. He went in originally for a routine colonoscopy and our lives were turned upside down. He has already had alot of side effects and he is nervous about what lies in store for him. Anyone who has had this combo, I would love to here from.

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  • Betsydoglover
    Betsydoglover Member Posts: 1,248 Member
    #2
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    Interesting - I will ask my oncologist about this when I see her at the end of the month. I was on Xeloda/oxaliplatin/Avastin for 6 cycles and am now on a break from chemo (and NED - YEAH!). My doc says that Avastin is more effective in combination with something like Xeloda (think of it as oral 5FU) than alone. I think she also believes in "preserving drugs" (in other words keeping them effective for when they are really needed instead of having your body / cancer get so used to them that they find ways around them.)

    I of course am Stage IV, so Stage 3 treatment may be different, but next steps and possible future treatments is a topic I wanted to discuss anyway, so I will ask her about Avastin only treatment.

    Betsy
  • gasman49
    gasman49 Member Posts: 10
    #3
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    Betsydoglover said:

    Interesting - I will ask my oncologist about this when I see her at the end of the month. I was on Xeloda/oxaliplatin/Avastin for 6 cycles and am now on a break from chemo (and NED - YEAH!). My doc says that Avastin is more effective in combination with something like Xeloda (think of it as oral 5FU) than alone. I think she also believes in "preserving drugs" (in other words keeping them effective for when they are really needed instead of having your body / cancer get so used to them that they find ways around them.)

    I of course am Stage IV, so Stage 3 treatment may be different, but next steps and possible future treatments is a topic I wanted to discuss anyway, so I will ask her about Avastin only treatment.

    Betsy

    It might be because Avastin is not approved for stage 3 and he is in a study that dictates the treatment. Great news about being NED! It is all still very confusing and new to us.
  • oneagleswings
    oneagleswings Member Posts: 425 Member
    #4
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    Hi- my husband is stage 4 and is on folfiri plus avastin...but I understand folfox is better but just not approved in canada for first line..there is currently a clinical trial with avastin for stage 3 (avant trial)here...have heard of just avastin once initial course given..if you are unsure try contacting the drug manufacturer for their clinical profile for the drug. Best of luck.
    Bev
  • ron50
    ron50 Member Posts: 1,723 Member
    #5
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    Hi Gasman,
    I was stage 3 with 6 of 13 nodes involved ,mine was on the other side I.E. descending colon ,I had 5fu and leucovorin initially but responded badly(nearly died of renal failure) then I went onto 5fu and levamisole ,an old and sickening regime and had that weekly for the best part of a year. The 21st of this month I will be 8 years ca free, so cheer up , this year will not be pleasant but it will be worth it when the No evidence of disease reports start flowing in ,All the best Ron.
  • wendy_21
    wendy_21 Member Posts: 30
    #6
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    Hi. It sounds like I am in a similar situation with your husband. I am also Stage III, sigmoid colon cancer with 2 out of 8 nodes positive. I also take FOLFOX and Avstin every two weeks. the first two rounds made me feel like a zombie -- especially for about 4 days afterward. I was supposed to have round 3 December 27, but when I went in for chemo they said my white blood cell count was too low so I had to wait a week. when I went in this week my WBC count had gone from .6 to 2.6 so they were able to give me the treatment. I think being nervouse is something that can't be avoided, but sharing all side effects with the doctor and getting support from friends and family is helpful.
    Best of luck to you and your husband!
  • nanuk
    nanuk Member Posts: 1,358 Member
    #7
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    see www.avastin.com Nanuk
  • gasman49
    gasman49 Member Posts: 10
    #8
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    ron50 said:

    Hi Gasman,
    I was stage 3 with 6 of 13 nodes involved ,mine was on the other side I.E. descending colon ,I had 5fu and leucovorin initially but responded badly(nearly died of renal failure) then I went onto 5fu and levamisole ,an old and sickening regime and had that weekly for the best part of a year. The 21st of this month I will be 8 years ca free, so cheer up , this year will not be pleasant but it will be worth it when the No evidence of disease reports start flowing in ,All the best Ron.

    thanks, it sounds like there is light at the end of the tunnel.
  • gasman49
    gasman49 Member Posts: 10
    #9
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    nanuk said:

    see www.avastin.com Nanuk

    thank you for the web address, I checked it out. It gave me an insight to the drug.

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