Pembrolizumab for breast cancer

[AmyCate]

Hi all,

i have just completed 6 months of neoadjuvant chemo and immunotherapy and will be having surgery in January for my high risk early stage TNBC.

I have found the therapy quite difficult and had my ups and downs. Just wondering if anyone has had Pembro by itself before and whether the side effects are much the same as when in combination with chemotherapy?

i know everyone is different but I am so so hopeful that I will feel better in the coming 6 months than I have for the past 6.  Looking for any kind of lifeline I guess!

if anyone has any experiences to share, I’d appreciate it. Thanks 🙂

[joseph_CCNSW]

Hi AmyCate.  Hello and thank you for joining and posting here. This forum is a wonderful space and hopefully you will find care and support from others who share their experience.  You may also find it helpful to search Cancer Council NSW's  website or to call Cancer Council's 13 11 20 line for information on dietary options. They can also talk with you about the range of services available to support you.   Kind regards ... Joseph_CCNSW

[Ali108]

Hi AmyCate

I had chemo previously for bowel cancer but not with immunotherapy.  So I'm not able to share my experience of the combined therapies and i have a different cancer.  However, the chemo made me feel absolutely awful - I couldn't really do anything. I was so exhausted and in pain (at tumour removal site).  The cancer returned and am now off chemo and receiving immunotherapy- which seems to be really working for me. I have energy, feel good and am more positive about how I can manage my cancer.  Hope this helps in a small way. 

[AmyCate]

Hey, thanks so much for sharing your experience with me. It does help me for sure. 

Sorry you’re having to go through cancer treatment again but I am pleased for you that this time you’re feeling so much better with the different treatment! All the very best. x

[Ma72R]

I have just undergone my first treatment of the exact same and finding it very difficult. I would love to hear from others who have managed to get through this and how.

[AmyCate]

Hi and welcome. Have you just commenced chemotherapy along with immunotherapy? It is certainly really rough. I found having baths and short walks outside to be the highlights of my day throughout treatment. The first few days were always the hardest and after that I would perk up again and be able to function relatively normally. 

I had surgery in January and I just finished radiation therapy this week and will recommence the immunotherapy in the coming couple of weeks. Out of everything, I found chemotherapy to be the hardest going. But the best advice I ever received is to hang in there, take enjoyment out of whatever you possibly can and know that you'll get through this phase.

All the best.