For hormone receptor positive breast cancer ,how effective is Femara when cancer has spread?
My sister has been diagnoised with hormone receptor positive breast cancer. They have found cancer cells in spine and lymph nodes. She has been given Femara to stop the cancer. How long will this take and how effective is this drug in ridding the body competely of cancer cells. She has been given a good prognoisis with this medication.
Hi there,
Every cancer is so different and each of us responds differently to treatment.
Femara, is an "aromatase inhibitor" - a relatively new category of drug used to treat hormone positive receptor. It is considered to be a very effective drug but it is impossible to say exactly how well or how quickly it will work for your sister. I am not a doctor but even if I were, it would be impossible to give you as exact an answer as we all would like to have.
I can tell you though, that it is very good news that your sister's doctor has given her a good prognosis and that hormone receptive cancers are, generally speaking, more responsive to treatment than those that are not.
Good luck to and your sister. I hope to hear good news from you in the near future.
Laurie
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Hi - Femara keeps cancer cells from bonding with the estrogen they need to grow. Eventually, since they're unable to grow, they die. However, like any cancer drug, there's no guarantee it's 100% effective. Since it's a relatively new drug, there isn't any long-term information about effectiveness or side effects; right now, they're recommending women remain on it for at least 7 years, and possibly indefinitely, if it seems to continue to work. Good luck to both of you—I'm glad your sister has been given a good prognosis, that's very encouraging! - PJH
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