A month's vacation from Ibrance

[Godbeforme]

Has anyone taken a month off and, if so, did your cancer antigens go right up or did everything maintain it's level? After a year, I feel like my body could use a break from it. God bless you and heal us all in Jesus name, amen! <3

[Dflur]

I took a couple months off, I had a hip replacement, in 2021, so I had been on ibrance and anastrozole for 2 years. Numbers did not go up or down. Now I’ve been on these medications since. I ve had good results, no progression, in bones where tumors started.

[Godbeforme in reply to Dflur]

thank you so much for sharing! <3 Encouraging!

[SoulJourney]

Hi!

Don’t worry about taking a break - it did me so much good! It was right before COVID when we planned a cruise and I was trying to figure out how to maintain my Ibrance/Fulvestrant while on the cruise. My oncologist decided to give me 6-8 weeks off of the Ibrance. I still did the Fulvestrant shot the day before we left.

The break did so much good my numbers dropped substantially!

We often joke that we would like a cruise prescription to get my numbers heading in the right direction again… I went another year and a half on Ibrance when we returned.

Ibrance was good for me - miss those days, on Enhertu now and just trying to get through it some days.

enjoy the break,

Tammie

[Godbeforme in reply to SoulJourney]

Hi Tammie! Thank you so much and I am in the valley of decision loop once again, and it really helps to hear from others. God bless you! <3

[awesome4ever]

I took Ibrance 125mg with Letrozole on the regular 21 days on, 7 days off for 5 years without issue. I required emergency surgery late last year and had to be off Ibrance for just over 1 month. After starting back on treatment I had scans that showed progression and my tumor marker CA 15-3 doubled. It had always the entire 5 years on treatment stayed in the normal range. So whether it was just that I was naturally on borrowed time after being on Ibrance for 5 years or not....I can't help thinking that being off for the month played a part. I will never know of course. This is just my perspective. Good luck making your decision.

[Godbeforme]

TY so much for sharing your experience; even with all we know about Ibrance there's still so much we DON'T know and I believe we are all as different as our fingerprints on how certain drugs will help or hinder us. I can tell you this, I had a lumpectomy in 2013, had radiation afterwards and nothing else for 5 years then slipped and landed on my behind with my femur breaking above my knee. so in 2018 I was classified as stage 4 and put on ibrance and letrozole and did well until blood pressure and chest pains and I panicked and stopped the ibrance. I do know I seem to feel better taking ibrance and my CA 27-29 had dropped way down to under 30 after just 3 or 4 mos. on the combo, in 2018. What I really want to say is FF to November of 2022 and we had moved to a new town and I went to another oncologist. They wanted to do a petscan and it was right after I had what I think was a gall or kidney stone pass, and like the next day I had the petscan and it lit up like a Christmas tree! I now know that inflammation in the body can make it look like cancer is all over because that was almost a year ago and I seem to be doing just fine but I am also aware that one can do just fine until they're not ...plus I have that pesky old age thing going on, almost 70; so take it with a grain of salt but the whole time I went to MD Anderson in Houston they never did a cat scan only ct scans and bone scans and when I asked if I needed another mammogram, MD Anderson said you don't get those anymore after you are MBC. So evidently this onc things I'm dying because he told me almost 12 mos. ago that I had 6 mos. to live (I was stupid and asked). Now at almost a year with him and he hasn't ordered any CT's, bone scans, nothing ... and I don't ask. Just sharing information because since moving here to SE Texas a few of my PCP's have wanted to do mammograms and I just said, "no, MD Anderson said I didn't need them anymore". I'm sure they love THAT lol .... God bless you and heal us all in Jesus name, amen!

[Totheriver]

I have had 2 breaks a month each of ibrance with no changes. Hard to go back on each time.

[2Hopeful]

I also go to M D Anderson. A Cat scan is the same as a CT scan. I have MRI twice a year and PET/CT yearly. No more mammograms.

[Godbeforme in reply to 2Hopeful]

Thanks for that! I was starting to think maybe I dreamed it, about no more mammo's that is LOL. Never had an MRI. Oh well, I think I will go back to MDA and get a follow-up/comparison, not that far away and much superior. Have a blessed evening!

[TammyCross in reply to Godbeforme]

Yes, definitely, go back to MD Anderson. This new oncologist is not up to snuff.

You don't need bone scans or mammograms if you are getting PET scans. I get tumor markers assessed monthly, and PET/CT's every 3-6 months, and whenever my tumor markers jump up. (For me, an increase in the CA27-29 has always signaled progression based on the PET/CT.)

I have been on vacations a couple of times for different reasons. I agree that it is good to give our bodies a break, and there is some thought (Dana Farber says) that a break can recharge the effectiveness of Ibrance. I am hoping that is also the case for other CDK4/6 inhibitors.

[mplevine]

Yes, I have. I needed surgery and took of about 3 weeks before and 3 weeks after. I am on Ibrance and trial med, just went off the Ibrance to get my blood count back up. No problems.