Estrogren receptors on lung cancer cells - Tarceva

I wrote several weeks ago that my Tarceva seemed to have quit working after taking my tumors down to about nothing   We had learned that researchers were trying to discover why women nonsmokers didn't have the degree of healing as men nonsmoker lung cancer patients.    They always take women off of estrogen for breast or uterine cancer because the estrogren feeds the cancer through the receptors on the cancer cells.    The researchers found those receptors on some mice injected with lung cancer.  I may have some of the terminology or actual working wrong here.  However, I had quit my estrogen when first diagnosed, went back on it about the time my Tarceva stopped working so well.   I quit the estrogen therapy about 4 weeks ago, and today my scan showed NO FURTHER GROWTH in the tumors.  It just may be that the estrogen was the culprit.  We'll get a more definitive ct scan in a month.  Just did an xray today.   My encologist said that might be the culprit, but tests on mice are definitely not conclusive.   If we had the same results on humans as we have on mice, there would be no cancer left.   Humans are different.  Anyway, we are all very happy that we have our lives back.  Did not want to have to change to the 2nd line of defense, which might not work and might be harsher.   We have things to do.  God loves us and has a wonderful plan for our lives.  

Thanks for this message and you are right - we have things to do!!!

 

glad to hear that things are working well for you.  My Tarceva treatments have been working well too and I pray for continued success.