Beating The Odds
Finely tuned diagnoses and targeted drugs are creating optimism about surviving breast cancer
Whatever the status of the tumor, "patients should seek out opportunities to participate in clinical trials," says Harold Burstein of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston. "Getting treated as part of a trial gives you better care--not just because the Herceptin studies were winners but because the care is carefully monitored, it reflects current thinking, and you're getting care that is state of the art." That's true even if you don't end up on the arm of the trial getting the drug--and trial participants will never be given no treatment at all for their cancer. Ask your doctor about trials you might be eligible for, or check out the National Cancer Institute's website for a list. "It's your body--you should learn as much as possible about what is happening and what your options are," advises McMenamin, who joined the Herceptin trial. "That can help to regain a sense of having some control over the situation." (Another benefit: While many women on the trial will now get the drug free, those who weren't may have difficulty being reimbursed for Herceptin, since it hasn't been approved by the FDA for its new use.)
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Weeks after the scientific meeting that had cancer docs standing and cheering, most have returned home to the day-to-day dramas of treating cancer. But their optimism about progress in the field, though it comes with the caveats necessary in the uncertainty of medicine, lingers.
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