Still normal... & an interesting research study

Still normal....or at least my tumor markers are.  I felt such a sense of relief when I heard that everything was still in the normal range!  It makes the upcoming PTscan so much easier, but I will admit that there is a part of me that is conflicted to get good news when so many of my friends with cancer are going through difficult times.  I know they would be the first to yell at me & tell me to enjoy it while I can, though; so, that is what I will do.  At least my credit card can relax as there will be no need for retail therapy until the next waiting period..... I forgot to list that one as a waiting side effect previously, but that is another big one for me. At least this time I was able to channel it into buying early Christmas gifts, lol.

I did read some encouraging research yesterday, but I thought posting about it yesterday would possibly jinx me.   The study posted here - http://www.cancernetwork.com/breast-cancer/mbc-patients-who-attain-no-evidence-disease-live-longer     references the research study published here --  http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cncr.29681/full    . The normal 5 year survival rate for metastatic breast cancer is around 10%. In this study, it was actually 24%, but for those who reached NED status, it actually was 78%.  That is a HUGE difference, and makes me very thankful for this time that I've fallen into the NED category.   Also, the study confirms that some of the decisions that I made were associated with an increased likelihood of NED status which just helps me to feel good about making those decisions.  I went more aggressive than is often done for metastatic, and it is nice to know that there is some research to back that up as being beneficial.  This was a small study of only 570 patients, but it is still encouraging.

Anyway, just wanted to keep you updated and share what I thought was interesting. Hope you have a good week!