Postby rp1954 » Tue Nov 27, 2018 9:46 pm
Since no one else has tackled this, I'm going to take a shot at this.
First, I view these things as a spectrum of individual problems to be solved, and coordinated in the attack if possible.
A. more chemo intensity but less chemo side effects
B. more chemo continuity e.g. everyday vs cycles and closer to surgery itself
C. more surgery(s) for localized cleanups
A. A number of people of the boards have used nutrition and supplements to reduce their side effects and somewhat improve their functionality and immune function. One member used IV vitamin C and K3 (+some supplements) to be able to continue Folfiri+Avastin an extra 2-3 years. Additional testing for cheap markers, mostly blood testing is crucial.
Some have used celecoxib and / or cimetidine to improve chemo performance, where cimetidine advantages are to the fraction that have CA199 and CSLEX1 experessing tumors - presumably often KRAS mutants.
We used as many generic drugs and potent supplements as possible, "experimentally", to maintain 5FU's kill power across all 8 years of chemo, where solo 5FU normally poops out in months, under a year. By careful combinations of the supplements and mild drugs by testing, we could intensify (immuno)chemo without much side effects and either reverse the tumor marker(s) rise or dissolve the masses (as scanned).
B. We used continuous immunochemo to address several issues of gaps common with cycles, surgery and vacations/break downs. Others have used less aggressive approaches to reduce their side effect days and better maintain more common chemo schedules.
c. In part, we did this by immune attack at the start, with a massive immune/apopotic response to cimetidine and many supplements, and partly, by surgical removal of the most resistant mets - the toughest mets could not resist cold steel.
We started the earliest possible, and so obtained small or contained residual mass(es) sooner, and thereby began a spiral of progress against multiple cancer sites. I have to admit that at 3 years (mild) chemo, I largely gave up hope of NED without chemo, but 8 years immunochemo has produced a substantial "chemo vacation" since June.
watchful, active researcher and caregiver for stage IVb/c CC. surgeries 4/10 sigmoid etc & 5/11 para-aortic LN cluster; 8 yrs immuno-Chemo for mCRC; now no chemo
most of 2010 Life Extension recommendations and possibilities + more, some (much) higher, peaking ~2011-12, taper chemo to almost nothing mid 2018, IV C-->2021. Now supplements