Yikes, Scanziety!

[TJM]

On 9/8/2021 at 1:43 PM, LexieCat said:

Yeah, kinda disappointing. Glad I didn't read the report first, which opines that it shows disease progression. My doc disagrees--thinks the radiologist was looking at things wrong. Anyway, there is a cloudy area that wasn't there last time, which my doctor thinks may be some kind of pneumonia. He was surprised I haven't had a cough or other pneumonia-like symptoms. 

In combination with the difficulties experienced by the other patient in the trial (whose scans are so cloudy they can't see her lungs), he's wondering whether this is an effect of the treatment--maybe autoimmune. In any event, he gave me a short course of additional antibiotics and scheduled the next scan for a month or so from now.

Lexie 

I have had walking pneumonia three times. In fact, it was because of that we found the cancer.

Walking pneumonia has almost no symptoms until it gets pretty advanced. I would not stress that so much, but that's easy to say and hard to do.

You got this

Peace

Tom

[jack14]

On 9/8/2021 at 4:04 PM, Babs said:

We’ll I had my scans.  CT and bone scan.  Tumor has shrunk by almost 1 cm and no metastasis anywhere!  I’m beyond the moon excited since the last few scans before this trial was always “slightly larger”.  My DR said technically she will call it stable because unless it’s changed by 30% or more it can’t be considered anything else.  I’ll take it.  The plan is to continue on this trial and scan again after 2 more cycles.  
 

Lexie, do you have any results yet from your scan?  I’m thinking about you.  
 

Babs

That's outstanding news Babs! So happy for you!

I am also happy to report that I am still on hold here, and we will continue with the Keytruda! Some shrinkage in the 2 cm supraclavicular lymph node of around a half cm. Primary site on the lung is 9mm, which is unchanged, and the subpectoral lymph node is unchanged at 2.2 cm. No new growths thank you Lord!

And we are waiting on "Foundation One" to email the specific details of my MET amplification which weren't included in the initial report. We are hoping that it has at least ten copies which would qualify me for a targetable therapy in the future should the immunotherapy stop working. Fingers crossed....

On a side note, a consulting Oncologist (an expert in MET amplification targeting) said that had we known back in May of 2020, before we started the Keytruda regimen, what they have learned about MET amplification since, we would have tried Crizotinib first. They have learned that when it follows immunotherapythe side effects are less of an issue. 

PS I am sharing (blabbing)  what I have learned with you folks in the hope that it might be of benefit to someone who has a MET amp.