Has Anyone Taken Abraxane Long-Term?

I know nothing about this medicine. Why are you being switched? I looked up this medicine, is it originally for breast cancer or another cancer?

https://www.abraxane.com/mbc/abraxane-and-advanced-breast-cancer#:~:text=ABRAXANE%20is%20a%20prescription%20medicine,or%20to%20kill%20cancer%20cells.

@marcy @krista: you can read more about all oncology medication in this app too: On Home Screen tap tracker->medications -> add medication -> enter Abraxane and then Tap on “Drug Info” to read the reference information, side effects and much more about this and other clinical drug information

I am de novo mbc hr+/her2- w pik3ca mutation and i was first on letrozole and kisqali for almost 4 mos.. had no effect AT ALL..just Continued disease progression.. so oncologist had me tested for ESR1 which came back negative, so switched me to fulvestrant+ kisqali, again, NO EFFECT, only progression, so basically, hormone therapy just hasn't worked for me AT ALL, not even a single cycle of stability.. tumor markers started in the 80s around aug 2023 and have continued to rise steadily every single time I have had blood work done and are now over 700... My oncologist says that this is very rare although he has seen it happen before but it is very unusual for someone with my type of cancer to not respond at all to hormone therapy (lucky me!), and he is recommending this to try and get me stabilized, but also says that the # of chemo cycles is indefinite and i should prepare myself once i have the port placed to never have it removed. This all sounds so drastic.. i was dx less than 1 year ago. I didn't know what to do!!

I don’t know much about this medication, but I am stage 4 and I currently have no evidence of disease. I am on an infusion of Herceptin forever, or until my cancer progresses. Those of us with metastatic cancer may have to be on medication all our lives and maybe not. There have been a lot of breast cancer treatment changes in the last 5 years. They are hoping that metastatic breast cancer will be something that will just need to be continually managed, like diabetes. There is hope for the future with cancer vaccines in trials. I have decided to choose the treatments with the most effective results, that will affect my life style the least. For instance, I chose not to have a port because I like to swim. The doctor allowed me to do this as long as my veins would allow me to have IVs easily placed. I asked for targeted chemotherapy (instead of the usual taxol therapy so I wouldn’t lose my hair. You may or may not have choices, but I would encourage you to get a second and third opinion. You can then go for it and live every day to the fullest, helping others, living out your purpose.

Thanks for the advice! Do integrative oncologists accept health insurance? I'm on SSDI and currently working part-time and cannot afford to pay out of pocket

Also, dr just told me that insurance won't cover abraxane unless/until i can't tolerate the side effects of the much more toxic taxol ( abraxane is a reformulated and far less toxic version of taxol bc unlike taxol it is water soluble. Bc of this it also doesn't require the premeds of steroids etc like taxol does)

I have no problem with the idea of being on medication for the rest of my life, that's absolutely fine. My issue is with the medication that I'm on for the rest of my life being once a week chemotherapy, for unlimited cycles, with no break, with cumulative side effects.. it just doesn't seem like it would be feasible to maintain my life this way. I wouldn't be able to work, care for myself, prepare meals I just think it would change everything. I am single I don't have anybody to take care of me and I'm doing this alone. I need a treatment that will allow me to still take care of myself on a daily basis

No, intergrative oncology is out of pocket expense. This is terrible what you are going through, Marcie. I wonder if the lab made a mistake on her biopsy and you were never hormone positive and that is why you did not respond to hormone medication and targeted therapy? Do you think that is possible? Krista

I've thought of that, but the lab tested my liver and bone tumors during initial biopsies in may 2023. They also tested my hip tumor again in sept 2023 when i had tumor resection/pelvic reconstruction/hip replacement. In jan 2024, i had a guardant360 blood test. ALL of these consistently came back as hr+/ her2- w pik3ca mutation.

And negative for an ESR1 mutation, so I'm not endocrine resistant

How about some kind of fundraising to help with expenses? Maybe your church or community? Can family members help? Integrative oncology has many alternative treatments. Email me even if you can’t afford it. Maybe we can find funding.

Marcy A it sounds like you need to be on a pik3ca targeted medication. I have that mutation and I've been on Verzenio and Falsodex for over a year now. There's also another targeted medication for that mutation called piquay. Ask your doctor.

I’m worried about Marcy. She has not responded to us.

Many people in this community have experience with long-term treatments and understand the concerns about ports and ongoing therapy. The feelings about indefinite treatment are completely valid, and it might help to discuss specific questions about treatment duration and side effect management with the medical team to get clarity on the plan. Others here may share their experiences with similar situations, which could provide helpful perspectives as you consider your options.