Success stories for stage 4 breast cancer

[His4Helium]

Long shot I know. But has anyone got any remission or positive stories on stage 4 triple negative breast cancer.

Thank you

My colleague has been living with stage 4 for 5 years now, no progression in that time and lives a very full and active life. She has monthly chemo, but apart from the day after you would never know.

Thank you.

My daughter is a medical negligence lawyer and said she's been quite surprised recently how much treatment has come on to the point that stage 4 is no longer a death sentence. She has clients expected to live a normal life span as they are responding to treatment - not to cure it but control it. Not specifically breast cancer but many cancers.

It varies so much. It depends where it’s metastasised to. If it’s bones, it’s usually more liveable with than if it’s liver. Some breast cancers don’t respond to chemo well, so that limits your options.

what about Cleverly's wife?

She’s not stage 4, is she? I’ve just had to look her up, but there’s no mention of that.

I think she is, yes

I don’t think so: 'The chemotherapy and radiotherapy has now been completed. As far as the medical profession is concerned there are no live cancer cells in her body. ‘

Anyway, perhaps we shouldn’t discuss her. It doesn’t seem right. I speak as a breast cancer patient myself.

ok, but I am too, and have met her and heard her give talks about this, so it is public

She had treatment for stage 3

My sister had stage 4 breast cancer. She had a mastectomy and chemo.
It's been 8 years and although she has other illnesses, the cancer hasn't returned.

Not breast cancer, but my BIL had stage 4 lymphoma. He is now 5 years cancer free!

I'm not sure exactly which type of breast cancer she has, but a family friend with mets in her sternum is about 15 years past her initial diagnosis. The (I believe twice yearly) treatment she is on hasn't cured her but stopped any further progression. She pretty much lives a normal life, is extremely fit, hikes or skis several times a week and is very busy looking after her three grandchildren.

Edited to say that our family friend had a double mastectomy, chemo and radiotherapy to begin with but was initially only given another two or so years to live. The medication that now keeps the cancer in check was something she was put on as part of trial and it has worked miracles for her.

My mum survived 7 years with stage 4 and I'd said at least 5 of those were really good years when you would have hardly known she was ill.

We were told 6 months to 2 years when she was diagnosed. It was a recurrence and she had liver, lung and bone mets at presentation and was so ill I thought she would die there and then but she had an amazing response to anastrazole. It just shrunk everything right down. I remember dad asking 'is she in remission?' and the consultant gently saying no, that's not possible but she really did seem that well.

Various setbacks came up over that time but for the longest time there was always a solution : she started to have bad pain from bone mets but then she was given injections that were also a miracle and gave her her mobility back free from pain. At one point she was losing her voice because of a met pressing on her largyngeal nerve but local radiotheraoy sorted that out. She never had chemo because she never wanted that only hormonal treatment and radiotherapy so she didn't get sick or lose her hair and it worked like a miracle for a long time.

It meant such a lot to her and to us. She had some amazing holidays including taking the grandkids to Disney. She got to enjoy at least some retirement years with dad and she got to see a lot more of her grandkids growing up which was amazing (I was afraid they'd not remember her) She just about made it to her 70th birthday and we were all together for a special celebration.

Maybe we were just lucky but it seemed to me that advances were happening all the time and that the stats we were originally given might be out of date.

It was Stage 4 breast cancer mum had

I'm afraid it wasn't triple negative though. Hence why the anastrazole was so good. I am seriously thinking about the prophylaxis.

My mum lived with stage 4 for about 15 years and this was about 20 years ago when treatments weren't as advanced

This has been so so nice to read. Reassuring and uplifting.

My friend has been stage 4 for 4 years now. She's well at the moment.