Advice on ceasing treatment

Patti J said:

Hi @Mellyb. I also have metastatic breast cancer. It is in my bones and liver. My oncologist told me that my cancer was "really bad".
What you have written about your mum is the most truthful thing that I  have read since joining this forum.
I had taken myself off the forum for a while because I  was not comfortable.
Thanks for being so honest.
In my experience, so many people have no idea what metastatic breast cancer is. I am constantly asked if  I have finished my treatment.
As for the funding! Every thing seems to be about early diagnosis and prevention.
There is no cut off point to say that you are a "survivor". My cancer returned after 15 years. I am very fit, thin, breastfed, eat healthy food and exercise. There is nothing anyone can do to prevent a recurrence.

Hi Patti, your post stood out to me as you're currently battling MBC with liver mets. I'm not sure if you've looked into this, but I found a radiotherapy option called 'SIRT' which is not widely known, actually we weren't even told about it by our oncology team, I just stumbled upon it through research.

As it is considered experimental for secondary cancers it's not covered here in Australia and costs about $7-$10k. What it involves is inserting tiny beads of radiation into the tumours inside your liver. They go in through the groin, through the main artery and locate the vein leading to the tumour to place the beads. It's a slow release radioactivity and apparently you're awake when they do it (like having an angiogram done for your heart) and the side effect profile is well tolerated.

In the research papers I looked at there's been great success overseas. However you need to meet a set of criteria to be eligible. Generally you need to have low disease burden elsewhere in the body and the tumours in your liver need to be clear and identifiable to access. 

I sought advice from a radiologist who does the procedure at Prince of Wales. At first it seemed mum could be a candidate but unfortunately her liver got out of control. It's diffuse with tiny scattered cells throughout both lobes, they just can't treat that with this therapy sadly. Also as mums cancer is growing fast, the slow release radiotherapy which works over 3-6 months really was futile. So no good for us. 

But it might be something you could look into and see if it may help you. Everyone is different and presents differently.

I do understand how you feel with the recurrence. My mum is and always has been thin, eats well, looks after herself. You're right, nothing seems to stop it. 

Best wishes Patti and thanks for writing xx