Ask about Avastin!

[No_Karma]

WHEN YOU START TREATMENT ASK ABOUT AVASTIN.   I'm no doctor, but it worked (briefly) for my mother.  It is being accepted more and more as an OVCA treatment.  This spring my mother had to join an NIH study to get it; this fall her Oncologist get Medicare to pay for it.  It seems very promising.

My mother seems to be at the end of a 3.5 year fight with Ovarian Cancer.  However, before she got there she entered an NIH study on the effects of Avastin on ovarian cancer.  The results were mixed. They were great b/c they dropped her CA-125 and dried up fluid that had been accumulated in her lungs. They were bad in that the Avastin raised her blood pressure so much it gave her a mini stroke (which basically was a really bad migraine, no lasting effects), but it was enough to get her booted from the study.  Fast forward six months and she's back on the Avastin (combines with Cytoxan as a last ditch effort.  Unfortunately, it seems to be too little too late.  However, the Avasitn again dropped her CA-125 numbers dramatically (as in a few thousand points), and this time dried up the fluid in her abdomen.  

I'm no doctor, but Avastin is basically a smart bomb, whereas chemo is a dumb bomb. The Avastin specifically targets cancerous tumors' blood vessels.  It essentially kills the blood vessels that feed the tumor, effectively starving it.  The difference between that and Chemo is that Chemo attacks all rapidly dividing cells, hence the hair loss etc.  But Avastin only hits the cancer cells/tumors.  It can't hurt to ask. So please do.  I think this stuff can really save people. If your oncologist doesn't know about Avastin and/or it's specific value to Ovarian CA, they I'd get a new oncologist.  

My best to everyone and the families of everyone suffering from this insidious disease.  The people who get it don't deserve it.  

THE POINT BEING, ASK YOUR DOCTORS ABOUT AVASTIN. It technically is not chemotherapy, but must be used with chemo (at least per the literature I read in the Dr's office).  From what I can tell, it's a potential miracle worker.  Just too little too late for us.  

[jane65]

HI Angie,
Am I wrong in thinking that you're about to enter new PARP research study or have you now been disqualified?

So much frustration, I feel for you.
Jane

[milashka]

It does seem to be one of the most promising new drugs now on the market. It is scheduled to be FDA approved for OvCa next year and included in the golden standard of treatment by 2011. However, until then, not all insurance companies will cover it, and it is a very expensive drug (I have heard up to $ 100,000/year).

I may have a recurrence soon (CA-125 is going up) and will definitely ask for this to be added this time around, hoping that my HMO will cover it, if not, to find a trial, or else, keep the recurrence at bay long enough for Avastin to be official.

[Angie1992]

Hello, I'm glad Avastin worked for your mother as it has many others.  You are right, oncologists should offer every option to women and be educated on them.  Unfortunately, Avastin did not work for me.  It caused fistulas.  Also, in Canada, a study reported that a
person died from a fistula formed in their trachea.  They sent a news release to doctors on the subject as a warning.  They also say that people who already have fistuals, should not receive Avastin.  I tried to be a part of a research study with Avastin and a PARP inhibitor for NCI and I was disqualified because for that reason.

I also hope something other than chemo is the furture in curing and treating all cancers.  Doctors who administer these drugs need to know the different types and the side-effects.
My best to you and your mother, Angie