I received herceptin during my chemo treatment and now herceptin only for 1 year ending 12/2008. I too had real bad muscle aches after the first couple of treatment and fatigue. But now I still have ongoing mucle aches it is not as bad as the first couple of Herceptin treatments. My heart scans have been good and not sure is the fatigue and muscle aches and chemo brain are from chemo, radiation and herceptin or all off the above from this last year of treatments. I want to know if anyone has continued Herceptin after the one year? I feel like it is working and really don't want to stop and risk a reaccurance. I feel like the herceptin is keeping the breast cancer away. My onco doc said the studies on Hercep do not indicate any longer term use gives better outcomes...Any one have any experience on longer use of Herceptin? Please respond. I can't find any information any where else regarding longer use of herceptin. Published: October 20, 2008 ::

This drug nearly killed me after my third infusion. By the time my doctor, who dismissed my distress over the phone, would see me in his office, my blood oxygen was 82% instead of 100%. At 80 you die. My heart was 4X bigger than normal, one lung was filled with water and one was 80% filled with water. I had ten additional pounds of water in my chest cavity. I fired my oncologist after I left the hospital a week later. He refused to admit it might be herception, but the 7 other oncs at the Regional Oncology Center disagreed with him. Every doctor who has read my chart in the past 2 years (7) have told me it is a miracle I am alive. They do not know how I made it. I did have congestive heart failure and was on 3 heart meds for nearly a year. I am 57-- very young looking and very healthy-- not overweight. I jogged for 25 years and used speed walking and nautalis after that. I was not overweight. Meanwhile, I am still cancer free. If you are going to take this drug, never let your doctor make you wait five days to be seen if you start coughing. Mine never mentioned an ER, even. He said it was nervous hysteria making me cough from the phone. NOT. Published: March 21, 2008 ::

I have been on IV Herceptin for 8 months. My doctor has prescribed 12 months of treatment. I have experienced fatique, slight nausea and chills for several days after each of my treatments. Published: October 08, 2007 ::

I was on weekly Taxol/Herceptin for 12 weeks and am now on a regimen of Herceptin every 3 weeks for the remainder of a year. I have a lot of pain (compounded by Fibromyalgia) and fatigue hits unexpectedly but considering the chemo I've been on and radiation treatment (33) - that's not unusual. My 1st mammogram/ultrasound since diagnosis was clear - so I'm very hopeful that this drug is working. The benefits far outweigh the side effects for me. (I'm also monitored with echo cardiograms every 90 days) Published: July 11, 2008 ::

I have been on Herceptin since Aug of 2007. I feel confident that it is going to work for me and the side effects are worth it. I have experieced fatique,weight gain and overall soreness in my legs. These could also be from chemo that I finished in December. Can't wait to put all of this behind me! Published: June 29, 2008 ::

my body does not react well, to this rx. As i speak right now, I'm in severe muscle and joint pain. I've told the Dr. , however, he denies the reports I tell him. I'm stopping it myself. That is only one side effect, I have more. Published: March 24, 2008 ::

I took Herceptin for a year, ending April 2007. For the most part, I experienced no side effects. I started training for the Susan G. Komen 3-Day 60 mile walk and began having serious stiffness after long walks (6 miles or more). It was bad enough that I could barely stand up for a few hours afterwards without lifting up with arms from chair. I also experienced edema in my feet and ankles on a trip I took to Colorado Springs. Within a month of finishing the Herceptin treatments, about 90% of the stiffness went away. I was also taking Arimidex and have been taking that now for about 1-1/2 years. I still have some stiffness when getting up, but nothing like the Herceptin experience. It was only when I exercised a lot that I experienced this. Published: February 01, 2008 ::