Last week, I saw my oncologist for my 6 month followup. Overall the visit went well, he added Palbociclib (Ibrance) to be more aggressive with my treatment. According to him Letrozole by itself was the treatment a decade ago but now with all the advances in breast cancer research, adding newer meds like Palbociclib have shown to increase life expectancy. Plus he ordered Zoledronic Acid (Zometa) infusion every 3 months to build bone! He also ordered a bunch of other tests, such as, blood-work panels to check my liver and kidney function, STAT CT and Bone scan.
The biggest concern I have is from starting Palbociclib (Ibrance) as neutropenia and lowering white blood counts (WBC)! Does that mean I am going to be prone to infection/ other diseases? One of the things I was looking forward was to traveling to India to see my sister (who’s visa got cancelled) and see family and friends. I know I can build the red blood counts (RBC) thru food and supplements, but what about the WBC? Needless to say I am bummed but I guess this means more research (before this special ordered medications comes).
Warrior Princess 