Oncotype DX

Dan & I decided it would be a good move to get one more opinion on chemotherapy. It's not about losing my hair, or being down for a few months. I just think that chemo is a lot to put my body through if the benefit is going to be marginal. Also, we both had questions when we left the first doctor's office and when we talked about it together, we still had different answers. We thought that perhaps we were not with the right doctor. They are very willing to have us meet with more than one doctor to make our decisions so I went with the Dr. Walker who's been treating my friend H.

Dr. Walker did a thorough job explaining chemo and why it is appropriate for me. He recommended the same drugs as the other doc, but thought that 4 rounds would be appropriate, and that there is not enough evidence to support doing the 2 additional rounds previously recommended. That sits well with me, as I understand that the side effects worsen with each round and 6 might get icky. The 2 additional would also keep me on chemo into the beginning of next school year and I'd rather be on the mend by the time I have to get my kids organized and on their way.

There is one more test that will help to decide whether the type of cancer cells that made up my tumor are likely to stay put or to travel. If they are likely to stay put, this minimizes any benefit from chemo. It is called Oncotype DX. I asked the new Dr. about this one, and he told me that the standard of care in my situation was to do chemo but if I'm having a hard time making that decision, this one might help me to be sure one way or the other. Oncotype DX is a genomic test which results in scoring the tumor with a likeihood of recurrence. It's one more way to decide if the risks of chemo outweigh the benefits in reducing the chance of the cancer returning. We are going to do the test and should have the results by Friday or Monday. I will go ahead with chemo if the test shows anything other than a very low (<18) score. If it's higher, it will just be a confirmation.

In the meantime, Dan & I are going ahead with our Chemo Education and Financial Planning Consultations this afternoon. We'll have all our ducks in a row to move ahead with either chemo or just jump ahead to radiation once we know the results of the Oncotype test.