Starting weekly Paclitaxel chemo for stage 4 Breast cancer

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Hello

My mum was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer in October 2019 she has been on hormone chemo since then but her oncologist called yesterday to say this is no longer working and she needs to move to weekly Paclitaxel chemo.

The oncologist said she will just still on this every week until it stops working .

I am just wandering if anyone else has had this treatment.

I worry this is going to be too much for my mum and wander how much longer will she get from this treatment, is it worth all the side effects, losing her hair etc for a few extra months or could she get years??

I appreciate everyone will react differently to the treatment but If anyone has any experience please could you share.

Many thanks xx

GreyCats over 3 years ago

She could potentially get years, but there is no way to know. I had about 10 months of a form of Paclitaxel, and the side effects, while not exactly a walk in the park, were far milder than those I experienced on another type of chemo.

The decision on whether or not it's worth it is hers to make. For some people, longevity is paramount. For some, quality of life, but this is never quite as black and white as I have just made it sound.

If she is unsure how she wants to proceed, perhaps she could give it a try and see what she thinks after 3 treatments? For me, the schedule was every week for 3 weeks, then a week off, so I had it on 3 out of every 4 weeks. (The cycle was considered 28 days long, with treatment given on days 1,8,15, so I am thinking perhaps she would want to see how one cycle goes.)

People on the secondary breast cancer forum and on the family and friends forum may be able to offer additional insight and information.

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Starting weekly Paclitaxel chemo for stage 4 Breast cancer