Metastasis

wlkdnose
wlkdnose Member Posts: 45
in Ovarian Cancer #1
My sister had a biopsy done on her left breast following an abnormal mammogram. The biopsy confirmed that her ovarian ca has spread. Her Gyn/Onc says that for now she will continue with her 5th cycle of Taxol/Avastin and Cisplatin. If her CA 125 continues to drop before the next cycle they will finish the 6th cycle. If not, then we will reassess treatment. What is your experiences with Mets? I know that mets outside of the abdominal cavity is kid of rare. Right? We are kind of freaking out here.

Comments

  • jbeans888
    jbeans888 Member Posts: 313
    #2
    From what I know ovarian
    From what I know ovarian cancer mets usually do stay within the abdominal cavity. My mets where on the small intestines, colon, small specs on liver and spleen. Usually it doesn't go the breast but I know there is a link between breast and ovarian cancer. The genetic tests BRCA 1 and BRCA2 would indicate if your sister is predisposed to getting breast cancer.
  • wlkdnose
    wlkdnose Member Posts: 45
    #3
    jbeans888 said:

    From what I know ovarian
    From what I know ovarian cancer mets usually do stay within the abdominal cavity. My mets where on the small intestines, colon, small specs on liver and spleen. Usually it doesn't go the breast but I know there is a link between breast and ovarian cancer. The genetic tests BRCA 1 and BRCA2 would indicate if your sister is predisposed to getting breast cancer.

    Yes
    Yes, my aunt who had Ovarian Ca was tested for the BRCA 1 & 2. Her test was negative. So, the genetics MD we saw thought it would be more beneficial to test her ovarian tumor tissue for a gene mutation then proceed to test her for a different gene ( I cant remember the name). But, it increases chance of breast, ovarian and colon cancer.
  • Tethys41
    Tethys41 Member Posts: 1,382 Member
    #4
    Mets
    Mets from ovarian cancer are not restricted to the abdominal cavity. During initial diagnosis, if the cancer has spread outside of the cavity, the cancer is staged as stage IV. The general rule of thumb, however, is that if she was initially staged at a lower stage, even if the cancer spreads, it is still considered as the original stage. I have seen some examples where the patient is restaged. Ovarian cancer can spread outside of the abdominal cavity either through the lymphatic system or the circulatory system. Generally, the chemo treatment is the same whether it has remained contained or not.
  • eward
    eward Member Posts: 210
    #5
    breast
    My mom's primary peritoneal cancer has spread to her breasts, too.
  • LaundryQueen
    LaundryQueen Member Posts: 676
    #6
    eward said:

    breast
    My mom's primary peritoneal cancer has spread to her breasts, too.

    Did mets to breasts follow Gemzar?
    I was wondering if anyone can tell me if there was chemo with Gemzar (gemcitabine) BEFORE the cancer showed up in the breast.

    Thanks for reply.
  • Kaleena
    Kaleena Member Posts: 2,088 Member
    #7
    LaundryQueen said:

    Did mets to breasts follow Gemzar?
    I was wondering if anyone can tell me if there was chemo with Gemzar (gemcitabine) BEFORE the cancer showed up in the breast.

    Thanks for reply.

    Are you saying that thats a
    Are you saying that thats a side effect from Gemzar? I was on Gemzar. Although prior to my cancer diagnosis, I did have a breast biopsy for cystic something or other. It was negative. I have had yearly mammograms since my treatment. My treatment ended in May of 2006. (endometrial adenocarcinoma)
  • LaundryQueen
    LaundryQueen Member Posts: 676
    #8
    Kaleena said:

    Are you saying that thats a
    Are you saying that thats a side effect from Gemzar? I was on Gemzar. Although prior to my cancer diagnosis, I did have a breast biopsy for cystic something or other. It was negative. I have had yearly mammograms since my treatment. My treatment ended in May of 2006. (endometrial adenocarcinoma)

    Heavens, no!
    I am not saying anything BUT since I looked at the molecular structure of Gemzar, I suspected that Gemzar would not be good for breast health because it contains fluoride. My suspicion is not a commonly accepted medical opinion so please don't think your doctor has any answers about this.

    Most people only think about the thyroid gland needing iodine to be healthy. According to David Brownstein, MD (and Royal Lee & others), breast tissue also requires iodine to be healthy. Fluoride competes with iodine for binding sites so I am thinking that breast problems could show up after Gemzar treatment.

    I usually supplement my diet with iodine but have stopped since I don't want to interfere with the cytotoxic effects of Gemzar that I am on now. I just might "paint" my breasts with iodine so that there is local absorption. I already have a history of fibrocystic breast problems (that went away after I was taking iodine) & I don't want the lumps back or something worse.
  • Kaleena
    Kaleena Member Posts: 2,088 Member
    #9
    LaundryQueen said:

    Heavens, no!
    I am not saying anything BUT since I looked at the molecular structure of Gemzar, I suspected that Gemzar would not be good for breast health because it contains fluoride. My suspicion is not a commonly accepted medical opinion so please don't think your doctor has any answers about this.

    Most people only think about the thyroid gland needing iodine to be healthy. According to David Brownstein, MD (and Royal Lee & others), breast tissue also requires iodine to be healthy. Fluoride competes with iodine for binding sites so I am thinking that breast problems could show up after Gemzar treatment.

    I usually supplement my diet with iodine but have stopped since I don't want to interfere with the cytotoxic effects of Gemzar that I am on now. I just might "paint" my breasts with iodine so that there is local absorption. I already have a history of fibrocystic breast problems (that went away after I was taking iodine) & I don't want the lumps back or something worse.

    I just didn't want something
    I just didn't want something else to worry about! The one cyst that I had biopsied back in 2000 is still there. It is just smaller now. Every once in a while I can feel it pinch a bit. Sometimes I feel something deep in my armpit and not sure if it is just my underwire bra.

    Oh I really got a mental image of "painting" breasts with iodine! lol.

    When I was on Gemzar, I actually just gave my husband the pamphlet and said if I exhibit any of the side effects, let me know because if I read them I would get them! Also, before I was diagnosed with cancer, they had me on Lupron for six months. When I look at the molecular structure on that it is quite frightful.
  • taiga
    taiga Member Posts: 75 Member
    #10
    Kaleena said:

    I just didn't want something
    I just didn't want something else to worry about! The one cyst that I had biopsied back in 2000 is still there. It is just smaller now. Every once in a while I can feel it pinch a bit. Sometimes I feel something deep in my armpit and not sure if it is just my underwire bra.

    Oh I really got a mental image of "painting" breasts with iodine! lol.

    When I was on Gemzar, I actually just gave my husband the pamphlet and said if I exhibit any of the side effects, let me know because if I read them I would get them! Also, before I was diagnosed with cancer, they had me on Lupron for six months. When I look at the molecular structure on that it is quite frightful.

    Just an FYI
    This won't pertain to the metastatis issue, but since you're talking about breasts - I was just diagnosed with breast cancer. I was 1 treatment away from finishing my clinicl trial for ovarian. Ironically, I've been on Avastin all year! But, if you have always been told you have dense breast tissue (as I have) and have ovarian cancer, a screening mammogram may be of no benefit to you, depending on how dense the tissue is. My breast surgeon told me my breast tissue is off-the-charts dense, he had never seen tissue that dense in someone my age (51).

    I had a mammogram last year and last month and the 1" lump didn't show up. It didn't show up in a diagnostic mammogram, only on ultrasound and the MRI. So INSIST on an ultrasound. Wish they would have given me that information to at least make that choice - I'm sure insurance would have put up a fight, but I would have paid for it out-of-pocket if need be. Unfortunately mine is lobular and HER2+. I'm getting lots of info. from the ladies on the breast board. Yet another reason to be our own best advocates.
  • carolenk
    carolenk Member Posts: 907 Member
    #11
    taiga said:

    Just an FYI
    This won't pertain to the metastatis issue, but since you're talking about breasts - I was just diagnosed with breast cancer. I was 1 treatment away from finishing my clinicl trial for ovarian. Ironically, I've been on Avastin all year! But, if you have always been told you have dense breast tissue (as I have) and have ovarian cancer, a screening mammogram may be of no benefit to you, depending on how dense the tissue is. My breast surgeon told me my breast tissue is off-the-charts dense, he had never seen tissue that dense in someone my age (51).

    I had a mammogram last year and last month and the 1" lump didn't show up. It didn't show up in a diagnostic mammogram, only on ultrasound and the MRI. So INSIST on an ultrasound. Wish they would have given me that information to at least make that choice - I'm sure insurance would have put up a fight, but I would have paid for it out-of-pocket if need be. Unfortunately mine is lobular and HER2+. I'm getting lots of info. from the ladies on the breast board. Yet another reason to be our own best advocates.

    Dense breast tissue
    Dear Taiga

    Have you checked estradiol & estrone levels? High amounts of estrogen could explain your situation.

    Please stay in touch with us on your progress.

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