Jevtana Not Working

[SweetOne]

My husband has completed five Jevtana treatments and had a CT and bone scan yesterday. The dr. called this morning to tell us the chemo is not working on his liver cancer. Has anyone else experienced this? I am curious about what the next treatment might be. He has already done 4 of 6 Taxotere and 6 Carboplatin and Etoposide treatments. We cannot afford the high cost of Xtandi and because of liver cannot use Zytiga. Thank you for your thoughts.

[AlanMeyer]

There's an old drug named bicalutamide, trade name Casodex, that used to be added when regular hormone therapy failed. It attempts to block testosterone uptake into the cells. A lot of docs have switched to using Xtandi, which is a more powerful drug to do the same thing. However, bicalutamide is a fraction of the price of Xtandi. If your husband hasn't already tried it, it might be worth trying. Dutasteride (brand name Avodart) is another even cheaper drug that used to be used with bicalutamide and Lupron or other hormone therapy. See here for prices:

goodrx.com/bicalutamide

goodrx.com/dutasteride

It's unfortunate that our American health care system sells patented drugs at whatever price the market will bear. It's your money or your life.

Alan

[vandy69]

Good Morning SweetOne,

There is a specialized treatment for cancer in the liver called "SIR-Spheres" or Specialized Internal Radiation-Spheres. Google it.

Radioactive nanoparticles are injected into the liver in a series of treatments and they lodge in the blood supply feeding the liver tumors and emit their radiation.

My Med Onc has used it with several prostate cancer patients and it is done in Atlanta at Piedmont Hospital.

Probably worth a discussion. Not sure of cost, but check insurance because it is cutting edge technology.

Best wishes. Never Give In.

Mark, Atlanta

[sdnb in reply to vandy69]

Hi Vandy, hope things are continuing to do well for you. I enjoyed your photos of your most recent trip. It's so wonderful that you are able to keep traveling! Take care, Susan

[vandy69 in reply to sdnb]

Good Saturday Morning Susan,

Thanks for checking on me! Traveling on hold for awhile while we concentrate on the source of my internal bleeding.

Have had a colonoscopy and. rectal MRI. Have located a 4 inch lesion, with more tests upcoming. Am on my "chemo break" since 1/9, but this problem is taking precedence and is quite painful.

But I am still here😃. Every morning I say my prayers and then repeat a line from a Willie Nelson song, "I woke up still not dead again today!"

Will be 6 years since diagnosis in August!

Stay strong. Never Give In.

Mark

[sdnb in reply to vandy69]

Pain in the front,

Pain in the rear,

But as you just said,

At least you're still HERE!!!

(Yeah, bad, eh? Sorry, But I like to rhyme stuff! LOL)

On a more serious note, I really am sorry to hear about the complications, but if anyone can take this down, Vandy, it's YOU!

Lifting you and Carol up in prayer for things to get better and the discomfort to lessen, my friend. As I have stated before, you have to beat this for Ray!

[wrando]

I had trouble paying for my Zytiga and my MO had a young woman that worked on this problem. She got me in a program with I think Johnson and Johnson, and I got my meds for free until it stopped working. Check on the manufacturer of Xtandi...they might have a similar program.

[bb66hotflash]

Jetvana has at most a 20% success rate after treatments with docetaxel and carboplatin (I had 8 docetaxel/carbo treatments). I had a large liver tumor (5cm) removed by microwave ablation. The other four visible, by MRI, don't make sense to try to remove, since they are all over, plus the MRI dose not pick up anything smaller than about 1.5 cm in size. I also had thirty- three months previously on Xtandi and two months on Xytiga. Been thru all the Gene mappings twice, including a Phase 1 drug which almost destroyed my liver. Hospice and Hope is all that remains. No breakthroughs will be released by the FDA in less than 5 years. This has been a tough but not unfamiliar journey, Best of luck to you and your husband.

[bb66hotflash]

P.S. I started on bicalutimide six years ago for a year, until it stopped lowering my PSA.

[Mathes72 in reply to bb66hotflash]

What are you taking now?

[bb66hotflash]

Nothing, waiting for need for Hospice. I take ginger on occasion for nausea. That is all the Dana Farber has left to offer me, Been six years.

[j-o-h-n in reply to bb66hotflash]

To: bb66hotflash all I can say is $(%^>/. ING Pca. You are in thoughts and Prayers.

j-o-h-n Friday 03/02/2018 5:00 PM EST

[Lynsi13]

This is an old thread but I was wondering if you were ever able to get the Xtandi?