I will keep you posted! You do the same for me.
Teri
FindTheBestHelp wrote:Hello, could those who have been on keytruda or mono immunotherapies of the like please chime in with your experiences based on the following?:
colon cancer was diagnosed about 4 years ago, surgery to remove the mass and total colectomy was performed followed by 6 months of folfox and was NED for like a year and a half (more like 2.5 years if you don't count CEA ticking upwards but still below 5.0). Last summer, after CEA went to 6.0+, PET scan found another mass in the abdominal region.. that was removed and following surgery and a scan months later, some cancer activity was found in the scans (areas lit up) in the pelvic region. Surgeon expressed that another surgery could be a rough experience, and some the cancer had metastasized masses could develop elsewhere right after the surgery anyway. The oncologist indicated the viable options would be chemo (although since there was a recurrence it's not believed that it will be as effective as desirable, and she would like to save it for down the road also), or immunotherapy (which she indicated good candidacy for).
the oncologist has recommended: pambra or Nivo - if quality of life is most important
she also indicated there is a combination of two immunotherapies but it's harsher on the body but seems to get even better responsive.
chemo + immunotherapy seems to be something some folks have tried but the oncologist said that would greatly impact quality of life, so if qualify of life is important she doesn't recommend that.
on one hand, going with chemo + immunotherapy or dual immunotherapies seems like it would have a better chance of longevity by killing off more cancer cells? but if for example chemo + immunotherapy doesn't work and causes more side effects and neuropathy, it could impact qualify of life that is of a finite amount of time.
guess there are no absolute answers or best paths, it seems rather individualized.
living as long as possible is the goal, with decent quality of life to make the added time worthwhile... wondering if one immunotherapy to start would be best and saving others for later? same for chemo?
Stewsbetty wrote:FindTheBestHelp wrote:Hello, could those who have been on keytruda or mono immunotherapies of the like please chime in with your experiences based on the following?:
colon cancer was diagnosed about 4 years ago, surgery to remove the mass and total colectomy was performed followed by 6 months of folfox and was NED for like a year and a half (more like 2.5 years if you don't count CEA ticking upwards but still below 5.0). Last summer, after CEA went to 6.0+, PET scan found another mass in the abdominal region.. that was removed and following surgery and a scan months later, some cancer activity was found in the scans (areas lit up) in the pelvic region. Surgeon expressed that another surgery could be a rough experience, and some the cancer had metastasized masses could develop elsewhere right after the surgery anyway. The oncologist indicated the viable options would be chemo (although since there was a recurrence it's not believed that it will be as effective as desirable, and she would like to save it for down the road also), or immunotherapy (which she indicated good candidacy for).
the oncologist has recommended: pambra or Nivo - if quality of life is most important
she also indicated there is a combination of two immunotherapies but it's harsher on the body but seems to get even better responsive.
chemo + immunotherapy seems to be something some folks have tried but the oncologist said that would greatly impact quality of life, so if qualify of life is important she doesn't recommend that.
on one hand, going with chemo + immunotherapy or dual immunotherapies seems like it would have a better chance of longevity by killing off more cancer cells? but if for example chemo + immunotherapy doesn't work and causes more side effects and neuropathy, it could impact qualify of life that is of a finite amount of time.
guess there are no absolute answers or best paths, it seems rather individualized.
living as long as possible is the goal, with decent quality of life to make the added time worthwhile... wondering if one immunotherapy to start would be best and saving others for later? same for chemo?
Not sure what you ended up going with but I am in Keytruda and have been since September 2017. It took me from numerous lymph tumours -one 11cm- down to only 1 left, which is 1.7 cm.
I have had no real side effects to date and have been able to live a “normal” life. I returned to work. And on treatment days (about 1 hour) I am able to still grocery shop, make supper, visit friends, clean house. No real loss of energy.
I haven’t had any issue with driving travel. Haven’t been on a plane yet.
Beth
boxhill wrote:My oncologist presented my two immunotherapy options as keytruda alone, or Opdivo plus Yervoy. We went with keytruda because it is generally somewhat easier on the body.
From what I've read recently, stats show Keytruda clearly beating Opdivo, but Opdivo plus Yervoy works better than Opdivo alone. At least for some cancers, whether or not not Yervoy is added depends on BRAF status. Do you know yours?
I don't understand why a pharmacy would be dictating this choice.
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