need info/opinions on Avastin please

cher8871

my dad has NSCLC Adenocarcinoma w/mets to brain. largest tumor removed from brain, other three inoperable. also lesion on lung inoperable...very close to heart they say. his onco wants him to take Avastin...he had 13 rounds of radiation to he brain and took 160 mg of Temodar during. he is supposed to take 300 mg of temodar for 5 days a month for 6 months, however, they are not ordering it this month as just last week, his white cells were completely wiped out, also dehydrated and ALL of his electrolytes were terribly low.

any and all opinions about avastin would be appreciated. they also say they will be more able to get him off the decadron if he takes avastin.

thanks!
cheri

friendoffurballs

Avastin
I was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer. I had chemo (taxol, carbo & avastin) for 6 months. It put me in remission. After chemo was over they put me on just Avastin, which I get every 3 weeks for the rest of my life. They said it has no side affects and for the most part it doesn't. I get very thirsty after getting it and my skin is very dry all the time. I find these side effects to be very minor. Avastin is a protein that keeps the cancer cells from growing. I don't know anything about decadron but I do know that if I wasn't getting the avastin my cancer would have returned by now. I wish you and your father the best. And remember the only dumb questions are the ones you don't ask.

Take Care, Kris

DK2

friendoffurballs said:

Avastin
I was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer. I had chemo (taxol, carbo & avastin) for 6 months. It put me in remission. After chemo was over they put me on just Avastin, which I get every 3 weeks for the rest of my life. They said it has no side affects and for the most part it doesn't. I get very thirsty after getting it and my skin is very dry all the time. I find these side effects to be very minor. Avastin is a protein that keeps the cancer cells from growing. I don't know anything about decadron but I do know that if I wasn't getting the avastin my cancer would have returned by now. I wish you and your father the best. And remember the only dumb questions are the ones you don't ask.

Take Care, Kris

Avastin
Thank you, dear Friendsoffurballs.
My wife had exactly the same chemo combo (four rounds) and has just been placed on Avastin only every three weeks. She still has the after-effects of chemo but gradually improving. It is great to learn that you are doing well with Avastin only. May I ask how long have you been on Avastin only?
Good luck in the future
DK2

cher8871

friendoffurballs said:

Avastin
I was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer. I had chemo (taxol, carbo & avastin) for 6 months. It put me in remission. After chemo was over they put me on just Avastin, which I get every 3 weeks for the rest of my life. They said it has no side affects and for the most part it doesn't. I get very thirsty after getting it and my skin is very dry all the time. I find these side effects to be very minor. Avastin is a protein that keeps the cancer cells from growing. I don't know anything about decadron but I do know that if I wasn't getting the avastin my cancer would have returned by now. I wish you and your father the best. And remember the only dumb questions are the ones you don't ask.

Take Care, Kris

thanks
thanks for the info kris! it took me a week to talk him into letting them put he portacath in to do the avastin. we'll make the appt next week. they aren't going to do the temodar any more as best as i can gather from the onco. just avastin, to improve his quality of life. good luck and GOD BLESS! thank god u are in remission!!!

3Mana

Avastin
My husband had non-small cell lung cancer & was not a smoker. He was diagnosed in January of 2010. He had 1 chemo treatment with 3 chemos, one of which was Avastin. Shortly after, he started coughing up blood. Before the second treatment, we saw the doctor & he said they'd take him off Avastin. Well, on Mar. 25, 2010, I lost him. He had the reaction which was supposedly "rare" and hemmoraged. It was horrible! I also read the side effects, but figured it couldn't happen to us. We were married 46 years & he was the love of my life. So maybe you should get more info before Avastin is started. "Mana"

3Mana

cher8871 said:

thanks
thanks for the info kris! it took me a week to talk him into letting them put he portacath in to do the avastin. we'll make the appt next week. they aren't going to do the temodar any more as best as i can gather from the onco. just avastin, to improve his quality of life. good luck and GOD BLESS! thank god u are in remission!!!

Hope I didn't discourage you!
Hi Cher,
Hope I didn't discourage you or scare you when I posted my husbands complication from the chemo. He had 3 kinds (1 treatment), one of which was Avastin. Things were looking good until he started coughing up blood. So the Avastin was eliminated and he had another chemo treatment. But guess it already caused the problem. He died on March 25th. But please have hope for your dad & remember that this was a RARE side effect.

3Mana

Is your dad doing okay on Avastin?
Cher,
Just wondering how your dad is doing since he was put on Avastin? I feel like maybe I've discouraged people, cause no one has replied to my comments about it. I've read good things but just remember, call the doctor if he starts coughing up blood. Let me know!

cher8871

3Mana said:

Is your dad doing okay on Avastin?
Cher,
Just wondering how your dad is doing since he was put on Avastin? I feel like maybe I've discouraged people, cause no one has replied to my comments about it. I've read good things but just remember, call the doctor if he starts coughing up blood. Let me know!

3mana
poor dad...he's had so many setbacks!! he has MRSA from the second time in the hospital. it presented itself right before he had to see the surgeon for his consult. that was a month ago. tuesday the 21st he will have an MRI to see if there has been any growth in either the lung or the mets to the brain. wednesday he will have the portacath inserted and then thursday he will start a combo of avastin and alimta. he has finally let what the onco is saying sink in i think....when he asked him again last week when he would get better, the onco told him he needed to worry about quality of life and not quantity. he seems very sad and says if he could just get his vision and balance back to the way they were.....i'm afraid that when these meds don't help that (and the onco already said they WOULD NOT) that he will give up. i have told him his treatment options are up to him, if he wants to continue, fine but i totally understand if he doesn't. i love him dearly and it sure does hurt to see him go through this.....

3Mana

cher8871 said:

3mana
poor dad...he's had so many setbacks!! he has MRSA from the second time in the hospital. it presented itself right before he had to see the surgeon for his consult. that was a month ago. tuesday the 21st he will have an MRI to see if there has been any growth in either the lung or the mets to the brain. wednesday he will have the portacath inserted and then thursday he will start a combo of avastin and alimta. he has finally let what the onco is saying sink in i think....when he asked him again last week when he would get better, the onco told him he needed to worry about quality of life and not quantity. he seems very sad and says if he could just get his vision and balance back to the way they were.....i'm afraid that when these meds don't help that (and the onco already said they WOULD NOT) that he will give up. i have told him his treatment options are up to him, if he wants to continue, fine but i totally understand if he doesn't. i love him dearly and it sure does hurt to see him go through this.....

Giver your dad a hug for me!
Cher,
I'll be thinking of your dad on thursday when he starts Avastin & Alimta. I sure hope it works for him. Cancer really sucks and it's terrible that we have to watch our loved ones go through this. But tell him to keep fighting and don't give up.
Keep me posted on how he's doing!! And Cher, try to think positive. I sure hope I haven't scared you by what happened to my husband. Remember this is RARE for that to happen. I've read alot of good things about Avastin. "Carole"

margie r

3Mana said:

Giver your dad a hug for me!
Cher,
I'll be thinking of your dad on thursday when he starts Avastin & Alimta. I sure hope it works for him. Cancer really sucks and it's terrible that we have to watch our loved ones go through this. But tell him to keep fighting and don't give up.
Keep me posted on how he's doing!! And Cher, try to think positive. I sure hope I haven't scared you by what happened to my husband. Remember this is RARE for that to happen. I've read alot of good things about Avastin. "Carole"

avastin
Just got on this web site today, tryn to get info. I had surgery june 2008 3a lung cancer. Did cisplatin, then taxol. It was in my lymph nodes. Did Ok until this year, did 3 rounds of Tarceva. That was in between cisplatin and taxol for side effects. Recovering from it now Suppose to start Avastin next month. I guess its what it is. lol dr said it would be more tolerable.

3Mana

margie r said:

avastin
Just got on this web site today, tryn to get info. I had surgery june 2008 3a lung cancer. Did cisplatin, then taxol. It was in my lymph nodes. Did Ok until this year, did 3 rounds of Tarceva. That was in between cisplatin and taxol for side effects. Recovering from it now Suppose to start Avastin next month. I guess its what it is. lol dr said it would be more tolerable.

Good Luck
Margie,
Don't get discouraged by my posting. I've read alot of good things about Avastin and my husband was just one of the unlucky ones. Just read your post today. Let me know how you do when you start it, okay? "Carole"

NayPaul

Avastin
My wife was diagnosed 5 wks ago with stage iv nsclc. 40 and non-smoker. We have four young kids, so she is up for anything that will prolong her life, although we have discussed quality vs quanity.

She is taking four meds. carboplatin, taxol and AVASTIN every three weeks. As part of a phase III study, she take certuximab WEEKLY. So every three weeks she receives all four.

Although she has only had one "long day" with all four meds, the certuximab seems to cause her the biggest issues. Face and torso broke out after this treatment.

We too were also nervous about Avastin as my mom had it this spring. It was the last ditch effort to save her from stage iv breast cancer. Her body was shot prior to taking it, and she had high blood pressure to start with. The doctor gave her one or two cycles and told her that we were doing her body (specifically liver) more harm than the cancer.

In retrospect, the Avastin was not the problem. The problem was my mother's body was not suited for any chemo. My wife is committed to staying on the avastin and certuximab for as long as her disease stays put.

3Mana

NayPaul said:

Avastin
My wife was diagnosed 5 wks ago with stage iv nsclc. 40 and non-smoker. We have four young kids, so she is up for anything that will prolong her life, although we have discussed quality vs quanity.

She is taking four meds. carboplatin, taxol and AVASTIN every three weeks. As part of a phase III study, she take certuximab WEEKLY. So every three weeks she receives all four.

Although she has only had one "long day" with all four meds, the certuximab seems to cause her the biggest issues. Face and torso broke out after this treatment.

We too were also nervous about Avastin as my mom had it this spring. It was the last ditch effort to save her from stage iv breast cancer. Her body was shot prior to taking it, and she had high blood pressure to start with. The doctor gave her one or two cycles and told her that we were doing her body (specifically liver) more harm than the cancer.

In retrospect, the Avastin was not the problem. The problem was my mother's body was not suited for any chemo. My wife is committed to staying on the avastin and certuximab for as long as her disease stays put.

Please keep me posted
Hi NayPaul,
It is scary when you read the side effects from all these chemos. My husband had 1 treatment of Avastin & Alimta & another chemo. He started coughing up blood about 2 weeks later. So we called the doctor & he had us come in. They did a CT scan & he said he was pleased cause the tumor was shrinking. So they just gave him his next treatment with Alimta & the other chemo and not Avastin. But the damage must've been done, cause he hemmorraged and died a week later.
So please keep me updated on your wife. Like I said in another posting, there have been good results with Avastin & my husband had a RARE side effect.
I'll say a prayer for your wife!! "Carole"

NayPaul

3Mana said:

Please keep me posted
Hi NayPaul,
It is scary when you read the side effects from all these chemos. My husband had 1 treatment of Avastin & Alimta & another chemo. He started coughing up blood about 2 weeks later. So we called the doctor & he had us come in. They did a CT scan & he said he was pleased cause the tumor was shrinking. So they just gave him his next treatment with Alimta & the other chemo and not Avastin. But the damage must've been done, cause he hemmorraged and died a week later.
So please keep me updated on your wife. Like I said in another posting, there have been good results with Avastin & my husband had a RARE side effect.
I'll say a prayer for your wife!! "Carole"

Thanks
Will be thinking of you as well. it has not been very long since you've lost your husband. Thank you.

3Mana

NayPaul said:

Thanks
Will be thinking of you as well. it has not been very long since you've lost your husband. Thank you.

Thinking
Hi Naypaul,
I'll be thinking about you too. Please keep posting how she's doing. How are the kids doing?
Take care! Carole

david f

friendoffurballs said:

Avastin
I was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer. I had chemo (taxol, carbo & avastin) for 6 months. It put me in remission. After chemo was over they put me on just Avastin, which I get every 3 weeks for the rest of my life. They said it has no side affects and for the most part it doesn't. I get very thirsty after getting it and my skin is very dry all the time. I find these side effects to be very minor. Avastin is a protein that keeps the cancer cells from growing. I don't know anything about decadron but I do know that if I wasn't getting the avastin my cancer would have returned by now. I wish you and your father the best. And remember the only dumb questions are the ones you don't ask.

Take Care, Kris

avastin
My wife was diagnosed with stage four non small cell as well. She had a third round of chemo yesterday using taxol, carbo and avastin. Encouraging to hear your cancer is in remission. They will do one more round and do another pet scan to see how it is diong. the only side affects she has had are nausea, constipation and fatigue, wll of which were mild.