Liver mets - treatment options

jena

Hi Judy, how terribly frustrating.  That is a long time to wait.  I wish 
you all the very best and will be thinking of you. jen xxx

iserbrown

@maggie001 sounds like your appointment was very thorough!  Wishing you all the best for your upcoming appointments.  Take care xx

maggie001

Hi Jena and Lynne, yep the waiting for tests and then waiting for results is very frustrating!  I feel I just want to get on with something to get on top of the liver Mets. Pretty sure this will be Xeloda (cape) but will know for sure on 21 Nov after the brain MRI and bone scan. I will let you know! 
Good to hear you are doing ok on Xeloda Jena and I hope for a continued se free run for you. Just rest up when you are tired. 
Best wishes, Judy 

Flozza105

wendy55 said:

@maggie001
I too have liver and spine mets, no diabetes thank goodness,first things first I would wait until I see the oncologist and have a long list of questions ready to ask, also a good idea to have someone with you as an extra pair of ears who can write notes, who is looking after your diabetes just your gp or is your oncologist involved in this or are you seeing a specialist, I was diagnosed with stage 4, 4 years ago, no early breast cancer just stage 4 liver and spine and 3 tumours in my left breast,chemo started straight away, and since then tumours in left breast GONE but mets in liver and spine still there, I am on my 6th line of treatment, like you I was also on affinitor and exemestane{aromosin} this lasted for 15 months,at the moment I am on a oral chemo drug called Xeloda and also have been having xgeva injections monthly which are now every 6 weeks,the xeloda has reduced my tumours from 6 in the liver to 2 but I still have numerous small ones in my spine,
and when the xeloda stops I will be put on something else.
November the 2nd is not far away,so be armed and ready with your list of questions,do you have a McGrath Breast Care nurse? if you are rural you can check their website to find the nearest one to you, also are your gp and oncologist communicating with one another as you have two health issues they need to be aware of what the other is doing in terms of your medication,waiting for results is hard, we all know that but once you have sat down with your oncologist and put all your concerns to him and received the answers you will be in a better place as to where you go from here,sorry I have no answers re the diabetes thats best answered by your health professionals, 
well,  its a beautiful day outside in country SA, so better get on and do some of those pesky domestic duties,{better get dressed first!} I dont work thank goodness I am retired, which helps in terms of coping with this pesky disease,
so sorry that you have had to join our "special club" but we are all here to help and support one another,
hugs wendy55

Flozza105

Hi ladies. Ive just joined this site. Im happy to share my experiences. Im 55 years old. Diagnosed with stage 4 breast in March 2015.
In March 2017 i picked up my gorgeous puppy and screamed in agony. Sharp pain in my spine was unbelievable.  Went to my osteo and he attempted to work on it. Then he asked if it was possible the cancer had met. 
Well he was right. It had met and like most i had tumors down my spine,neck, femur. The pain was excruciating!  So radiation helped with the pain. Then i went on a trial at Peter Mac and all was going well until Oct 2017. I was away on holiday and felt a bit strange and just knew something wasn't right. Extremely high temp put me in emergency. 
When i got back sure enough 2 tumors in my liver!
Sad for me and the team at Peter Mac. So stopped the trial and my oncologist put me onto oral chemo capecitibine.
As with other ladies 2 weeks on and 1 week off.
Im on my third round. Bit of nausea here and there, getting more tired as i go along. But the last 2 times i've developed "hand and foot" syndrome (a common side effect) which has become quite painful.
Ive tried cold face washers wrapped around my feet, various creams but to no avail

maggie001

Hi Flozza, welcome to this discussion thread but sorry that you find yourself here. 

I am also on the oral chemo capecatebine (Xeloda) and am taking the tablets for 14 days and then 7 days off. I started on 4 tablets (2000mg) each morning and night. 

Just before Christmas (21 Dec) and on day 10 of my third cycle, I had to go to the Northern Cancer Institute to get my Xgeva shot. I was having a lot of pain walking due to the ‘foot’ syndrome from Xeloda. The nurses scheduled an appointment with the oncologist registrar that day and she directed me to stop the cycle that day, take the 7 day break and start again on 3 tablets (1500mg) morning and night. I have just finished a 14 day cycle at the reduced dose with no problems in the feet, although the skin on the ends of my fingers keeps peeling - so much so that my phone no longer recognised my finger print for online banking! 

My oncologist ist said I should get 12 months out of Xeloda before progression, so fingers crossed for a year or more!

I think you should ask your oncologist or bc nurse if you should reduce the dose. These se can be permanent so don’t put up with it - seek advice

i was prescribed the anti nausea drug metoclopramide which I take one tablet morning and night when I’m taking Xeloda. I also take a Vitamin B6 tablet morning and night while I’m on the Xeloda - B6 is supposed to help with the hand and foot syndrome. I don’t take either of these on the 7 days off ( I try to give my body a drug break and only continue with Exemestane, insulin and metformin on my 7 days off)

Metformin did not help alone with my diabetes so now I inject 30 units of insulin each night and take 1000 mg of metformin. This seems to be regulating things somewhat. My oncologist said it is the cancer that is blocking the insulin pathways. 

Anyway, I’m now planning to walk the Camino de Santiago , all 800kms of it! I am doing it with my 3 sisters who are all in their 70’s. We start on 17 August and are only going to walk 15kms a day, so it will take us longer than most, but the aim is to reach Santiago de Compostela , not break down trying. We start in St Jean Pierre de Port in France . I’m really looking forward to this!!

Please let me know how you get on with Xeloda Flozza. I hope you get relief from the HFS. 

Cheees 
Judy