Folfiri & Avastin w/ no signs of cancer

ritaclough

I'm newly dx stage4. My team wants to put me on my second round of chemo as I guess the first round,folfox, wasn't successful and recurred in my ovaries. I've had a hysterectomy and now I need to go 12 rounds with folfiri and Avastin with 5fu and Avastin after for maintenance for who knows how long. I don't have any other signs of cancer and this seems extreme to me but I trust they know what they are doing and I guess if there are lil cancer cells floating around this will kill them.ha. Has anyone else been in this position?

msccolon

i did FOLFIRI with Avastin after my recurrence
I had a recurrence in my ovaries, which prompted a full hysterectomy and we did follow up with FOLFIRI with Avastin. Did it get rid of all my cancer? No, since I did have more recurrence later. Did it give me more time before that recurrence, who knows. THis is definitely a personal decision, one you really need to think hard about since you will ultimately be the one dealing with the consequences. Many here believe it's useless to take chemo when there's no evidence of disease, chemo works against cells that are faster dividing that normal cells; if they aren't showing themselves, will it really do anything more than damage the normally fast dividing cells such as the intestinal lining and hair follicles? Who knows? Many others believe it's the only smart thing to do, to follow up surgery with chemo, to catch any microscopic cells that are most likely lurking around. After multiple recurrences, I am not at a watch and see time ... I have lymph nodes that show active disease, my CEA continues to climb, but I'm not convinced that more chemo will affect enough of a change to make it worth the crap for the time being. I'm chasing some pain and trying to narrow down the exact cause right now. If it turns out to be due to active disease, so be it. I will probably still opt for any surgical option rather than chemotherapy if it's available. I've had so much chemo at this point, it's like my cancer is getting too efficient at working with the chemo and things need to be shaken up a bit. I will pray for you to find the right decision for YOU! Take care and stay strong.
mary

Lori-S

Rita
I'm happy that you don't have any other signs of cancer. That's always a good thing. I'm not a stage IV so I can't speak from that experience. Do you know your CEA and if that is a good indicator for you? It sounds like they really want to hit it with all they have to make sure that you don't have another recurrence.

For myself as a IIc to begin, I choose not to jump into chemo right away if I didn't have to. Though the doctors were insisting on chemo for me, I wanted to monitor my CEA. I didn't start chemo until my CEA continued to climb after my surgery. If my CEA hadn't risen, I personally would have choosen to not do the chemo. But, that is just me and I know others would prefer to hit it with all they have especially as a stage IV. As I'm not a stage IV I can't tell you for sure what I would do. Since I am having a terrible time with chemo, I'd like to think that I'd take a wait and see attitude and not do chemo if I didn't feel it was absolutely necessary. But, I know that until you are in that position you don't ever really know which decisions you might make.

I just wanted to let you know that I am thinking of you. I will pray that you make the right decision and feel comfortable with what you decide. Here's to no signs of cancer!