Leslee report

[SimplyStar]

Reports were not good. stopping Doxil because of heart muscle damage, CA125 counts doubled to 350, lesions unchanged, platelets and white counts below normal, switching to Gemzar in 2 weeks.  It has rocked her, I can tell she is depressed, she says she wants something that will knock it out, she wants an agressive chemo.

[crecco]

I hate to hear that about LesLee. In my opinion Gemzar is aggressive so I hope that it will work. Please know that you are both in my thoughts and prayers. Hang in there LesLee, they will find the right one yet. We are all pulling for you!
                Love Chris

[Aussie000]

Hi, my mother is a stage 4 and has been on a combination of Gemzar and Caelyx, this left her with awful side effects such as mouth ulcers, constant headaches and swelling in feet and hands so 2 weeks ago the oncologist dropped the Caelyx and now she's just on Gemzar, she said she is already starting to feel better and the side effects are gradually easing. She can't take carboplatin because it gave her tinnitus, her CA125 is down to 8. I hope Gemzar works for your friend.

[SimplyStar]

Yes  right from the beginning,   daily,  but Leslee is an asthmatic  so has some heart involvement anyway. It is just a slight amount  but we did not want to chance it any further, especially with her CA125 raising.  

[Kimchi]

I feel your anxiety and worries.  I hope you and Leslee can find a combination that will work for her without knocking the wind out of her organs.
Alan asks a good question.  Was Leslee taking CoQ10 during the Doxil?

[alanpvegas]

Oh the poor thing :(  I'm sorry to hear about that....damn toxicity!!!  Was she taking CoQ10???  Looks like the bio-absorbable ones are the best to take for that...the regular (OTC) ones don't get enough into the bloodstream

[bmcd]

Marty,

So sorry to hear the bad news.  Bad news never seems to end with this beast.  Maybe the stem cell treatment that Deandra is going to try would bring positive news.  Whatever path Leslee takes I hope that it brings the results everyone is hoping for.  

Take Care and God Bless,
Bob

[butterflytc]

My thoughts and prayers are with you and your daughter Marty, keep the faith

[kimmywah]

Dear Marty,

I am sorry the results that Leslee received were not the best, but in the same breath hope and pray that the Gemzar will 'knock it out'.  
I too am new to this site, but you, Marty, are a joy to everyone here and so full of knowledge and love, that you not only are supporting Leslee through this, but everyone else as well.  My love and prayers are with Leslee, you and your family.  Take care of yourself too..this is a very old Maori proverb..

Hutia te rito o te harakeke
Mai wai te komako e ko?
E patai atu ahau ki a koe,
He aha te mea nui o te Ao?
He tangata, he tangata, he tangata.

When you slice open the heart of the flax plant
Where will the Bellbird sing?
Let me ask you,
What is the most important thing in this world?
Tis people, tis people, tis people.

Kia kaha (strength be with you)

Arohanui (with much love)...

Kim

[nyc lady]

Marty - I don't know what to say....my thoughts are with you all....I hate this disease, just hate it.
Pam

[Brownie3321]

Marty - I am very sorry this is happening to Leslee. You and her are in my prayers, and I would seriously consider going back to MD Anderson to see if she could pass for the stem cell transplant treatment option. This could be the one!! With love, Deandra

[Stage3overseas]

I saw your post about going anywhere in the world for treatment.  My mother is currently being treated at Fuda Cancer Hospital in Guangzhou, China.  They do everything there.  She had tumors in her lungs (metastized from ovarian cancer) back in January and they did cryosurgery on it; and in March, only 10% was left per PetCtscan.  She will be undergoing more cryosrugery and iodine seed implantation.. She was supposed to do doxil in December (in the Philippines, where we are from), but she lost so much weight after the first chemo and still had difficulty breathing (they had to take water out of her lungs).  ANyway, I will keep you all posted how her treatment progresses in China.  They can probably keep her stable- they never promised a cure, but I'm hoping controlling her cancer.  (We have a neighbor in the philippines too, who has stage 4 also - prostate cancer- and he's being treated at the same hospital- he is stable and strong- FUda was able to eradicate cancer cells in his lower body -  and tumors in his brain are now being treated- he is back home and is doing weekly chemotherapy).  The good thing with Fuda is you have a lot of options and not just chemotherapy (even with chemo, you have to wait to see results)...I pray for everyone.  Keep your strength.

[mrsbaguba]

Oh, Marty I am so sorry to hear this news.  I was so hoping that this would be the one that wowuld put Leslee's cancer in remission.  Please try to stay positive and hopeful.    I pray that Leslee finds both physical and emotional strength to get through this setback.; and that she gets some much needed rest before her next round of chemo. And I hope you, too, are taking care of yourself as well. It is very hard to put up a brave front when your heart is so heavy with worry and love. I send you and Leslee love, hugs, prayers and positive thoughts. Judie :)

[OzBron]

I am so sorry for you both that Doxil wasn't 'the one' for you. It seems so hit and miss to find the chemo that works best for you but it will happen, you will find it. this is such a long road, sometimes you do just need to rile against the world and be depressed for a bit to get the negative energy out so you can pull yourself together for the next round. I am sure it wont take long for Leslie to come back up out of the depression ready to fight.  Perhaps Gemzar or whatever the next treatment is will be the perfect match for Leslie and she will get the very long remission you dream of. I will keep you both in my thoughts and send positive thoughts your way. Bron

[justscore]

I am keeping you and Leslee in my prayers.........

[survivor_susie]

So sad to hear about this.  One of my docs recommended taking the Tamoxifen family of drugs, since all of my cancers were estrogen receptors. I'm taking Aromasin, which has significantly cut my estradiol level.  The drug is in clinical trials now, but I'm not waiting for the results of that trial. I figure it can't hurt, and it makes me feel proactive.
Best  of luck.  I'll be praying extra hard for success.

[ireneo]

How discouraging for Leslee and for you too that the treatment wasn't helping. In a way you're right - all the drugs are experimental in the sense they have to find the one that works just right for each person. I've found that to be true for heart meds as well. It feels like some drug roulette. But there is a winner out there for her that will help. For now she just needs the time to be upset, discouraged and angry. She'll pull through and be ready to fight back. Hugs and prayers for you both.   Irene

[onniebay]

I'm so sorry to hear Leslee's last treatment did not work.  She is in my thoughts and prayers.  

[Helmar]

Hi Marty...I join in with the others.... that's really sad news that the Doxil isn't doing so well for Leslee. I'm on it at the present...only had the one treatment so far, but did have it a couple of years ago and it worked well for me then. My Oncol. doesn't like it, so he's not happy giving it to me, but we have to try something.
Just want to say that Gemzar was really bad for me with the bloods. The only chemo I had where I needed transfusions..... red cells and platelets... so tell Leslee to keep a close watch on her bloods while doing Gemzar.
I wish Leslee all the best, and hope that this one works for her. Looking forward to hearing good news soon....hugs...Helen...

[gma718]

I was so upset when I read this...You and your daughter along with the rest of your family have already endured so much...Please know that my thoughts and prayers are with all of you. With a mother like you. Leslie will fight this!!!!! I admire your strength and wisdom and know that you will get through this "rough" patch...Love, Gia :)

[coogeegirl]

I am so sorry to hear of Leslee's news, I am thinking of you on the other side of the world and hoping that Gemzar is Leslee's silver bullett

Lots of warm Aussie Hugs

Jenny

[silver&gold]

Im sorry to hear this news too , this is a truly cruel disease . I hope so much that the next treatment is the one.

Thinking of both Leslee and yourself .

Angiexx

[Sandymac]

I'm so sorry her news wasn't better.. I haven't been on here all that long,but I know from hearing from you that Leslee is a real fighter. I can only imagine how this feels for both of you. Hoping and praying the new treatment works wonders.., Sandy

[SimplyStar]

I appriciate  all your caring words, you are all true friends.  I must work my way through this and get back to being positive.  I am not angry with God, I am angry at the entire medical field for not solving this problem. The cure is out there and they need to find it.  Her doctor told her today that Genzar would be the last "good" chemo for her and anything after that would be experimental.  I feel he made an absurb statement, I think all the chemos offered is experimental. If I find out there is a better drug out there some where in the world and the US is not taking advantage of it,  we will travel.

[Pamela367]

Praying your Dr's will find what works for you!
God Bless