as mentioned in a prior post on 2 Nov, the blood work to detect circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) was completed. on 25 Nov, the results were received by Dr. Kristi Funk's office. she forwarded them to me with the comments, "Zero! Wow! Such great news!" the test results indicated negative, MTM/ml not detected 0.00.
when asked about what zero (truly) means, she stated, "There is a quantity of tumor DNA that can exist below the level of detection for the test, so zero is more accurately considered “undetectable” in your situation."
i am thrilled! and, i will continue monitoring every three months for two years. then if still 0.00, re evaluate stopping the first line of treatment this mind-body is receiving. at that time, the mind- body will have been receiving treatment for nine years.
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hurricaneheather
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I am so happy for you! This is truly encouraging to me as I recently started my 2nd line treatments and have been frustrated by all the side effects come with it. But seeing your post gave me hope that maybe one day, I will be able to stop these treatments and be cancer free! Thank you so much for sharing!! 🙏❤️
original bc dx in Oct 2011. treatment plan: radiation & Tamoxifen. bc mets to right pleura in July 2015 w/pleural effusion. procedures: pleurodesis & VATS bronchoscopy. treatment plan: Ibrance, Anastrozole, Zoladex. same line of mets treatment for seven years; it will be nine when we re evaluate.
mets dx in July 2015. the mind-body has been NEAD since Mar 2016. there is a $149 one-time processing fee for the administrative service; which includes recurring orders for repeat testing for a total of two years. Signatera interacts with insurance. there are questions and answers on Dr. Funk's website, tumorDNA.com.
Wonderful news! Is Dr. Funk your primary onc or did you seek her out just for this test? After reading your post I messaged mine and this test isn’t something they do.
thank you! Dr. Funk was one of the handpicked practitioners, on the medical/well being team, with the original dx in 2011; she remains part of the team caring for me. she is amAzing! sorry to hear that the test is not offered. if interested, you can read about it, and sign up, on Dr. Funk’s website, tumorDNA.com.
For the past four or five years, I have been pestering the oncs for an entry into a circulating tumor cell test, to no avail, until very recently. I begin one very soon. I believe that my level of cancer is low and I am probably being over-medicated.
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