Surgery while taking Ibrance.

[Lilykristymichael]

I am in a great deal of pain needing a knee replacement. As I understand, it is not recommended that stage 4 patients have major surgery whil on Ibrance and arimidex. Has anyone here had this type of surgery and if so did it cause progression? Thank you so much -Madlyn

[Betbop]

Yes I've had surgery 2yrs ago it was a femoral artery bypass. I was taken off the Ibrance for 3 wks and luckily I had no progression. Hope this helps you and Good luck.

[Lilykristymichael in reply to Betbop]

Thank you so

Much. This info is very helpful. The best to you.

[Hidden]

Hi Lilykristymichael, ( I hope I spelled that correctly!),

My honest, off the cuff opinion? Do the surgery. Get the knee dealt with so that you can keep moving (and living!) easily, which will -- in my non-medical opinion -- help your body fight the cancer.

Nearly six years in, I've sort of concluded that making decisions based on the fear that you'll die soon is riskier than making decision based on the hope/assumption that you'll live a long while.

Is the concern re: surgery about, like, white blood cells? I would dismiss that, and time the surgery within your cycle to minimize it.

I say this as someone who would have made some different decisions if I knew I'd live this long, and also as the daughter of a father who has refused to get a knee replacement (because he didn't want to add to the national debt). Go figure.

(I'm sorry if this was curt! I'm just reeling from RBG's death!) Sending love!

Lynn

[Lilykristymichael in reply to Hidden]

Dear Lynn: thank you for your welcomed advice. It all makes sense. Yes, RBG’s death is very sad. She fought for us.

Please have a wonderful weekend.

Much love-Madlyn

[friesianfan]

Hi Madlyn,

My wife faced the same decision nearly a year after her original diagnosis, while on Ibrance, Letrozole and Zometa. She had needed knee replacements for years and then this came along... Her onc at Dana Farber (Dr. Nancy Lin, who is doing the EMBRACE seminar on Oct 20 publicized on this site) said the following:

“I can’t tell you how long you are going to live, but I CAN tell you that you will live long enough to make this surgery worthwhile!”

So she had one knee done about six months before our daughter’s wedding and the other one a month after. Three and a half years in, she is still on Ibrance and Letrozole and doing well, with almost pain free knees! She was off the meds for about three weeks total surrounding the surgery, but otherwise her cancer protocol was not affected.

Besides being great advice vis a vis her knee surgeries, she still looks back at Dr. Lin’s comment as one of the most reassuring points on this journey, at an early time when it really helped...

Good luck with your decision, and the surgery, if you choose to go forward with it!

Dave

[Lilykristymichael in reply to friesianfan]

Dear friesianfan:

Thanks so much for your helpful reply. It looks like surgery is not something to shy away from. I appreciate your response. The best to you and your wife.-Madlyn

[AvidBooklover]

They found a spot of cancer on my thyroid (which was indicated on a PET/CT for MBC, or we would never know it was there), which has been stable for 18 months (there so long there is calcification around it!), thus I am having a partial thyroidectomy on Nov 30th. Was told to be off Ibrance for the week before and the week after. Already been off it for 2 weeks when I had Covid in Mar and for 2 weeks when I had a terrible case of poison ivy a few weeks ago.

BTW, I now have had melanoma, breast, MBC and now this. Yesterday I did 40 laps in the pool wearing my wetsuit and intend to do the same today!

Do the knee surgery!

[Lilykristymichael]

Dear AvidBookLover: Sounds like you have been thru a lot. I appreciate your advice. Am still debating. Thank you.-Madlyn

[hopefulinadks]

I was supposed to start Ibrance this month as my scans were not good but I fell and broke my femur and had surgery to put a rod in my thigh 2 weeks ago, My oncologist put my Fulvestrant shots on hold and is delaying Ibrance. I am worried about progression but don't have a choice. I have several questions for my oncologist as to how long before I can start up systemic treatment again and how long I can afford to wait. I bet it's different for everyone and will depend on blood tests. I also need a rod in my tibia before it fractures. I will let you know what I learn from all of this and pass on any information.

[Lilykristymichael in reply to hopefulinadks]

Dear Hopeful: thank you so

Much for responding with this information. From what I am reading thus far,

Surgery can be an option. My

Best to you.-Madlyn

[Wildcat1]

I had to have emergency surgery while on Ibrance. I was off of it for a month. No progression. Usually your dr will take you off 2 weeks prior to your surgery so your counts can rebound.

[Lilykristymichael in reply to Wildcat1]

DearWildcat1.

Your reply is very helpful to me in making my decision. I wish you the best. Thank you.-Madlyn

[Iwouldlike2knowmore]

I had a partial knee replacement in Feburary and it's okay. You have to quit taking ibrance before surgery.

[Lilykristymichael in reply to Iwouldlike2knowmore]

Thanks so

Much for your reply. It helps to know others made that decision for surgery and are ok. the best to you,-Madlyn

[SamishBay]

I had 3 level c spine surgery. I was off Ibrance

for 7 weeks and did well. I am a 7 time survivor.

I am going to have lower spine surgery and will be off of Ibrance again.

[Lilykristymichael in reply to SamishBay]

Dear SamishBay. You are certainly an inspiration. Thank you for sharing. My best to you in your upcoming surgery.-Madlyn

[neosha]

Thank you so much for posing your question and starting this thread. I am on Ibrance and have been for about two years. I had a recurrence after 20 years! Recently I started having horrible pains in my legs. I felt like I had aged ten years in about a week. I thought it was arthritis. After self medicating for a while I finally went to my orthopedist. By the symptoms and x-rays, it was clear that the problem is in my back. He recommended an MRI which I had. Apparently, I have two broken bones and and some other issues because of the cancer. He prescribed and gave me a back brace which helps some but not totally. I will see my oncologist this coming Tuesday. My fear is two fold. First, I do not know what this means as far my treatment goes. Second, I fear an operation on my back. I feel it is just too risky. As bad as the pain is, I would rather accept that than an operation. My orthopedist

stated that he could insert a type of glue to hold the bones together. My concern there is how it would affect activities like gardening, taking walks, or exercising? As I said thank you for your inquiry and thanks to all who responded. Do any of you out there have any advice or experiences to relate to me?

[Lilykristymichael in reply to neosha]

Dear Neosha: sounds like you really need the surgery to feel better. From what I am reading here, it is better to get pain taken care of and have a better quality of life. Good luck in whatever you decide to do.-Madlyn

[Arisgram]

I hesitate to reply because it will reveal a terrible character flaw, but maybe my admission will help you. 7 mos after my MBC dx and starting Ibrance and Arimidex, I had a full face lift. I did not come off my meds and had the ok of both my oncologist and plastic surgeon. I had no issues. I would say fix your knees. You may live another 20 years and don't need to be in unnecessary pain.

Andi

[Lilykristymichael in reply to Arisgram]

Dear Andi: your reply is very helpful to me. Thank you so much. And I am sure you look absolutely stunning. Not a character flaw at all!!!

[Arisgram in reply to Lilykristymichael]

I'm glad it helped, and I hope you get some relief from your knee pain soon!

[Sugarbaker60 in reply to Arisgram]

My kind of girl! It is time for my lids to be redone and I am probably going ahead w the procedure.

[Lilykristymichael in reply to Sugarbaker60]

Very important to look and feel good.-Madlyn

[Hidden]

I had hip replacement surgery while taking Ibrance. I just had to stop it for a few weeks before and wait for a few weeks after to ensure my neutrophils didn’t drop and increase my risk of infection.

[Lilykristymichael in reply to Hidden]

Dear Sarcie: thank you so much for sharing your journey. It is very helpful to know you did so well.-Madlyn

[Dflur]

I have been on Ibrance for 2 years. But my worst pain was an arthritic hip. In April I found an orthopedic surgeon willing to operate! Not all surgeons feel comfortable operating on cancer patients. So glad I did, I can walk, no cancer progression, no pain. It’s definitely worth it to me!