avastin

I don't know if I can help
I don't know if I can help you Nancy but I'm on Avastin and have not had any problems. I do get bloody noses though but I don't really get monitored for any kind of bowel trouble. I'm never even asked any questions about it. Sometimes I do have a little abdominal tenderness but nothing major. I know for a fact my kidneys are monitored every 3 weeks for protein but that's about it. I would suspect that the bowel perforation occurs in a small subgroup of patients but given your history you may be at higher risk? I just don't know. Can the doctor help you?

nancy591 said:

questions..
How long have you been on Avastin? What medication is given with it? How has your number been? My surgeon told me there is no way to really monitor for bowel perforation. Usually no real side effects leading up to it either. I will probably complete this cycle and have one more cycle of Gemzar alone. At that point I will have PET/CT and it will be determined if Avastin will be added.

I had my third infusion on
I had my third infusion on June 29. I have to take dexamethasone starting the day before chemo for a total of 3 days. I think the only med I get with the infusion itself is some kind of anti-nausea medication, which is really sop (standard operating procedure).
My CA125 dropped 34 pts. after the first two infusions which sent me over the moon. That this stuff was even working for me was great news. Research is showing great things from Avastin.

I wish you luck. I'm sure this will work for you too. Try not to worry and let me know if Avastin is added. I'd like to know your experience with it.

Best,
Kate

Disneynutt said:

I had my third infusion on
I had my third infusion on June 29. I have to take dexamethasone starting the day before chemo for a total of 3 days. I think the only med I get with the infusion itself is some kind of anti-nausea medication, which is really sop (standard operating procedure).
My CA125 dropped 34 pts. after the first two infusions which sent me over the moon. That this stuff was even working for me was great news. Research is showing great things from Avastin.

I wish you luck. I'm sure this will work for you too. Try not to worry and let me know if Avastin is added. I'd like to know your experience with it.

Best,
Kate

Hi Nancy
This is my 1st post, but I've been reading here since Sept. of last year.
My mom has recently had avastin added to her regimen in addition to carbo/taxol in March.
So far she has had 5 rounds of avastin.

She does not receive any extra pre-meds. The avastin adds I believe, just 30 or so minutes to her chemo.

She gets her urine checked for protein every 3 weeks, and they keep an eye on her blood pressure, as it can get elevated with the avastin. Her blood pressure has always been good with the avastin. They also keep an eye on her BUN & CREAT in her labs. These have remained good as well.

So far she has not had any side effects other than an occasional bloody nose.
Her ascities in her pelvis disapeared. Not sure if this was from the avastin, but it went away after it was added. Her CA-125 has continued to drop, but VERY slowly. It's seems to be getting to the point where it's stalling out. Her oncologist assured us that as long as her numbers continue to inch down and she is tolerating the chemo well, they would stay on this path for now. My mom has been very lucky in handling her treatment with little side effects.
She's feeling really really well lately. It's coming up to a year since she was 1st diagnosed. You can read a little more about her journey in my profile.

Praying for positive results for you.
Karyn