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Has anybody been on or know of anybody that is taking Taxol, a lower dose, for a yr., as a maintence drug theraphy ?
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Taxol as a maintence drug
Explore topics in this discussion:
Cancer Taxol Surgery Meningitis Breast cancer Ovarian cancer Chemotherapy Pain Acupuncture Paclitaxel
20 replies
- Oldest first
- Newest first
- By chelle64
- Posted May 2, 2008 at 5:58 pm
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HI,
I WAS JUST ABOUT TO ASK THE SAME QUESTION. I JUST FINISHISHED 6 ROUNDS OF IP CISPLATIN AND IV TAXOL. MY CAT SCAN LOOKED CLEAR AND I JUST HAD MY IP PORT REMOVED AND LOPOROSCOPY DONE LAST MON. MY OYN/GYN SAID TO THE NAKED EYE, EVERYTHING LOOKED GREAT BUT WE ARE WAITING ON THE PATH REPORT. MY CA125 WAS 2300 PRE-SURGERY AND CAME DOWN TO 56 4 WEEKS AGO. WE HAD PLANNED TO DO THE WEEKLY TAXOL BUT NOW HE SAYS IF THE PATH REPORT COMES BACK GOOD I MAY NOT WANT TO. HE IS KIND OF LEAVING IT UP TO ME . I HAVE BEEN RESEARCHING FOR 5 DAYS AND THERE SEEMS TO BE PROS AND CONS. SO FAR- MY UNDERSTANDING IS THE MAINTENANCE CHEMO COULD DELAY THE REOCCURANCE BY AN AVERAGE OF 7 MONTHS. WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT IT?
- By CatOv
- Posted May 2, 2008 at 6:43 pm
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My old Dr., did tell me that ladys on the Taxol maintence dose, did go longer in remission. My new Dr. never mentioned Taxol as this, but I did mention Hexalen to him. He wasn't for or against taking Hexalen. There is a women on the Hexalen (she is in remission), that I will see this Weds. night at our support group meeting. I am going to ask her about the Hexalen and Taxol. See what her Dr. said.
- By Martha2
- Posted May 3, 2008 at 10:27 am
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Hi, I did one year of taxol maintenance about tto years ago as part of a clinical trial. In my particular case (and i was considered to be at high risk for reocurance), I had a reoccurence within 3 months so it's very hard to say whether it was any benefit to me or not. As treatments go, it wasn't to difficult. The first two rounds, which was when I was still recuperating from my initial carbo/taxol chemo, were a little shakier then the rest of them but once I got the main chemo more out of m system the maintenance was quite easy. I didn't grow back any hair during that year. I know that my doctor is still very up in the air about how helpful Taxol maintenence is - he says maybe it is, maybe it isn't. That's a big help isn't it. Sorry i can't be more definative for you. Best wishes for a continued good future.
- By CatOv
- Posted May 3, 2008 at 10:36 am
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Thanks Martha......your input does help. My surgery was last Sept. So its to late for me to get into the trial. I guess what I am wondering is, is Taxol maintence just available as a trial, or a maintence without being in a trial ? I will check with my Dr. on Mon.
- By hdrider
- Posted May 3, 2008 at 11:09 am
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Hi Cat-I am currently on taxol only as a maintanence therapy.My Drs highly reccommended it,but I also was dx with clear cell type which has a high reoccurance rate. Dr told me that not all drs suggest doing this therapy,but my drs tend to be more aggressive on their approach.Dr also mentioned putting me on tamoxifen,or Femera after the taxol therapy. There wasn't any mention about Hexelan but I have wrote that down and will ask.I hope all goes well for you,let us know what dr suggests.take care,Mary Ann
- By Georgi
- Posted May 3, 2008 at 1:17 pm
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Hi,
I was started on Tamoxifen when I had a recurrence and have been on it for about 8 months. During that time, my CA 125 has consistently lowered. The best part is that I have had no side effects at all. Tamoxifen is NOT a "chemo" but is an anti-estrogen drug and it can be very helpful if you have an estrogen sensitive type of ovarian cancer. I will ask about Hexalen at my next visit.
Georgi
- By hinsopa
- Posted May 3, 2008 at 11:32 pm
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I am at the Weekend of Hope in Stowe, Vermont. Google it to find out more. I highly recommend it.
I heard a gyn/onc speak last nite and he was not very positive about this. Said the side effects can outweigh the benefits and not much data on the benefit. My doc has the same opinion.
- By gpawelski
- Posted May 4, 2008 at 12:26 pm
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A study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology said that continued treatment with Taxol for metastatic breast cancer does not improve progression-free survival.
Analysis showed there was only an 8.6% chance of observing a 3-month improvement in median progression-free survival in the group receiving maintenance paclitaxel.
Investigators concluded that the results provided strong evidence against the hypothesis that maintenance paclitaxel is associated with a clinically worthwhile effect on progression-free survival.
And when you consider the toxic profiles of Taxol, it makes even more sense. (J Clin Oncol 2006;24:3912-3918)
- By CatOv
- Posted May 4, 2008 at 7:10 pm
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Thanks, everyone for your helpful info. I am not sure yet what I am going to do. I'll let you know when I decide.
- By verlinda
- Posted May 4, 2008 at 11:16 pm
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Cat,
After I finished my chemo in November, my doctor asked if I'd like to take part in a clinical trial involving Taxol. It was the regimen others have described.
He told me he'd had a couple of patients, but that one had had to stop due to side effects. I think a second patient had a recurrence anyway. Taxol is what causes the neuropathy. 7 months later the neuropathy in my feet is unimproved, although my hands seem a little better. It's more inconvenient than painful, but I don't want it to get any worse.
When the offer was made, I said, "It sounds to me like the only thing I'd get out of the study is more neuropathy. He laughed and said, "That seems to be the trend, but ethically, I needed to offer this."
The study may be over. Possibly the taxol helps in specific cases.
I was stage 2, but had clear cell. So far, I'm all right.
- By Sel
- Posted May 6, 2008 at 1:31 am
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I have been on Taxol low dose since Nov 2006, with good results. I am getting 1/2 IP and 1/2 IV, had my 19th one on Friday. BUT I have had an increase of 15 points in my CA 125 this month, with a clear PET/CT. I will get a CA 125 again on the 25th, PET/CT on the 29th if it is still up, and see the dr on the 30th. Hoping it was just a lab error, but with my history that is not likely. Write me off line if you would like to talk.
- By acrensha
- Posted May 6, 2008 at 6:46 am
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Pat,
I read your reply and noticed you had numbness with your feet. I also had this side effect and learned that taking vitamin B6 can be beneficial. I have been taking it for about a month and have definite improvement.
Take care of yourself,
Alexa
- By suemac
- Posted May 7, 2008 at 1:57 pm
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Verlinda,
I have read it takes 6-12 months for the neuropathy to resolve. However, my hands were fine in less than a month and my feet are noticeably improved. I attribute this to a combination of acupuncture and vitamin B6.
I decided against the maintainance Taxol also, for the same reasons as you, but am considering Femara.
Sue
- By MarthaMcQ
- Posted May 9, 2008 at 8:04 am
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My diagnosis in October 2004 was clear cell stage 3a, grade 3. My gyn onc recommended the year of maintenance taxol and I did that from April 2005 to March 2006. I have been in remission since. I did several things to lessen neuropathy, beginning with the initial protocol of carbo/taxol. I took l-glutamine for 5 days beginning with the day of chemo infusion. This was recommended by my onc nurse who gave me an article from an oncology nursing journal with the dosage instructions. I also did Healing Touch and acupuncture. By the time I finished the 18 months of chemo my feet felt like wooden blocks and I was falling occasionally. It took about a year for all neuropathy effects to subside but recently when I was pushing really hard, putting in 11 hour days at the hospital with a dying companion I found it difficult to walk at the end of the day.
In my case, I'm glad I did the additional chemo and there are things you can do to lessen the side effects. I also added vitamin B6 in my recovery phase, and other supplements to help me regain my mental focus.
Blessings,
Martha
- By verlinda
- Posted May 9, 2008 at 4:06 pm
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Thanks. I haven't gotten much advice on anything from my oncology group unless I know a very specific question to ask.
For example, when I asked about nutrition post-chemo, the advice was, "Eat a healthy diet." When I asked exactly what that meant I got their standard, "We can make an appointment with a nutritionist for you." They are quite willing to make appointments for a fee with someone "specialized" on their staff for any major question I have asked.
I'm really frustrated with them. They did a great job on the actual surgery but have been absolutely no help with morale or the "human" side of having cancer, ignored any feedback I gave about medications, and answer any questions about "Why are you making this kind of decision?" with "That's what we think is best."--nothing about research, statistics, studies, alternatives, etc.
Does anyone have any advice?
Has anyone else found this in their treatment
- By sanrose
- Posted May 10, 2008 at 4:38 am
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I took Taxol for a year as a maintenance drug. I got it at 100 percent.
-Rose
- By CatOv
- Posted May 10, 2008 at 7:51 am
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Rose: Did the taxol help ? Taking 100% for a yr. must have been ruff. What stage were you, and are you now in remission ? I am going for a second opion, but not until the end of June, after my vacation. Thanks again everyone for all you replies. Cat
- By sanrose
- Posted May 12, 2008 at 6:51 am
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HI Cat,
I am so far NED. I finished the 12 months in January. However, I still have neuropathy in both feet and pain in both hands and since i'm so long out of chemo i have an oncologist that questions my complaints by saying, 'If it's from our treatment". I wish they would have been honest from the beginning and told me what i can expect. If i had to, I would do it again, but i would have researched further and found out what I could expect by way of side effects.
I also have problems with my job because I'm so long out of chemo, the cancer is in remission and I look so good. My stamina isn't even close to what it used to be.
Anyway, that's my story.
-Rose
BTW, I was Stage IIIB
- By gpawelski
- Posted May 12, 2008 at 10:33 am
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CatOv, your question about taking Taxol at a lower dose has as much theoretical questioning as it is taking dose-intense Taxol therapy. Dose-intense Taxol therapy has been observed for years in the increase incidence of CM disease (carcinomatous meningitis).
In my years of research about Taxol, I came across information seven years ago from cell function analysis about the increase in the number of metabolic activity of mitochondria of the surviving cells from taxanes (Taxol) from taxane therapy, even in cases where the majority of the cells are being killed by taxanes. It may indeed give clinical response (tumor shrinkage), however, these are mostly short-lived and relapses after a response to taxanes are often dramatic.
The "holy cow" moment of truth came in 2004 with the discovery from using the CellSearch System technique that quantifies circulating tumor cells, researchers had shown that chemotherapy with Taxol causes a massive release of cells into the circulation, while at the same time reducing the size of the tumor, explaining that complete tumor responses do not correlate well with improvements in survival.
Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are cancer cells that have detached from solid tumors and entered the blood stream. This can begin the process of metastasis. To metastasize, or spread cancer to other sites in the body, CTCs travel through the blood and can take root in another tissue or organ. In this stem cell research, anti-cancer treatments often effectively shrink the size of tumors, but some might have the opposite effect, actually expanding the small population of cancer stem cells that then are capable of metastasizing.
Sources:
National Cancer Institute
American Journal Clinical Oncology 2002;63:6-15
Am J Oncology Rev 1(3):169-170, '02
J Clin Oncol 21(6): 959-962, '03
Oncol News Int'l, Vol 14, #5, May '05
Cell Function Analysis
Cancer 2003 Jun 15;97(12):2972-7
Breast Cancer Res. 2006;8(4)2006 BioMed Central, Ltd.
Office of Research, Florida State University
Bionumerik
PNAS 104: 11103-11108 June 20, 2007
- By 1knocR
- Posted May 26, 2008 at 9:00 am
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Hi Cat,
I did just taxol after undergoing 2 rounds of carbo and taxol. I made it thru 8 treatments and decided to stop them. Even though my scans were clear, my CA 125 began to rise. And I started to feel like crap all of the time. I researched this study and found out it was stopped after several months with no clear explanation as to why. It is supposed to give us longer survival times but I found it to be too much of a burden on my body and told my dr I wanted to stop. I was in remission for almost a year.
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