Great news thanks to the Oncotype DX test!

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After months of limbo, we finally have a treatment plan for Mom's breast cancer and it's good news today! There is a cutting edge test called Oncotype DX that helps predict, in some women with certain circumstances, the need for chemotherapy. Mom's number was 13 - in the low percentile. What that means is that chemo would have no benefit for her and, in fact, her graph had her responding better without it.

She will progress with radiation and anti-estrogen therapy. Utilizing the new treatment drugs they have available now, her doctor told us that her number will actually go down. On top of that, her osteoporosis has disappeared! The doctor said she would not need any further treatment for that condition as there "wasn't even a hint of it". Prayers have been answered.

It's been an amazingly EXCELLENT day and I wanted to share with ya'll the info on the test that has given us tremendous comfort. Obviously, nothing in healthcare is 100% but we'll take the low almost 10% chance of recurrence as pretty good odds that this is going to be her one and only run with breast cancer.

We have hope... :)

Below is the link to the info on the Oncotype DX test. Please share it with everyone you know. We never can tell who will benefit from what we have learned today. It may save someone their life or, at the very least, give them the knowledge they need to make an appropriate decision when it comes to their treatment plan.

Thank you for all the prayers, posts, e-mails and calls!
We feel we can finally breathe...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Genomic Health - Oncotype

http://www.genomichealth.com/

Information That Can Help Predict Chemotherapy Benefit

Oncotype DX is a test that examines a breast cancer patient’s tumor tissue at a molecular level, and gives information about her individual disease. This information can help tailor treatment for her breast cancer. Oncotype DX is the first and only gene expression test that has been accepted as demonstrating the ability to predict a patient’s benefit from chemotherapy as well as her risk of recurrence.

The Oncotype DX assay is intended to be used by women with early-stage (Stage I or II), node-negative, estrogen receptor-positive (ER+) invasive breast cancer who will be treated with hormone therapy.

Oncotype DX has been included in the 2007 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Clinical Guidelines on Use of Tumor Markers in Breast Cancer. This represents a significant step forward for the role of molecular diagnostics in breast cancer treatment planning.

Oncotype DX has also been included in the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) 2008 Breast Cancer Treatment Guidelines. This inclusion reinforces the significance of molecular diagnostics in breast cancer treatment planning and, in particular, the potential value of the individualized information provided by Oncotype DX.

A recent study has shown that Oncotype DX may also be informative for post-menopausal women with node-positive, hormone receptor-positive (HR+) invasive breast cancer.

For complete information on Oncotype DX for Patients & Caregivers, Healthcare Providers, and Managed Care Organizations, visit OncotypeDX.com.

For additional information for Patients & Caregivers, visit MyTreatmentDecision.com.