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One of the biggest challenges in any diagnosis, and treatment journey, is finding positivity during very worrying and difficult times. It’s easy to be afraid and get stuck in a negative spiral.
Being positive and thinking positively can help you cope with cancer, but it is natural to also feel upset and frightened sometimes. People with cancer are often encouraged to be positive. But it’s not always easy. It’s important to acknowledge there will be some very difficult days and allow ourselves to feel and express emotion.
If positivity doesn't feel right for you, or doesn't feel right in a specific situation, or on any given day, that's okay. Acknowledge how you’re feeling, allow it to be, and then think about some actions you might take to feel differently.
This is a Phase II open-label study to assess the efficacy and safety of camizestrant (a next-generation oral selective oestrogen receptor degrader - SERD) compared to standard endocrine therapy (aromatase inhibitor or tamoxifen) for patients with early ER-positive HER2-negative breast cancer and an intermediate-to-high or high risk of recurrence and who have completed definitive locoregional treatment and have no evidence of disease.
New Zealand sites for this trial will be Auckland, Waikato and Palmerston North.
Read more about this trial here.
7 November 2024
ATNEC is a phase III, open, randomised, multicentre trial comparing standard axillary treatment (either, axillary lymph node dissection [ALND] or axillary radiotherapy [ART]) with no axillary treatment post-surgery, in early stage (T1-3N1M0) breast cancer patients.
This is a randomised phase III trial of adjuvant radiation therapy versus observation following breast conserving surgery and endocrine therapy in patients with molecularly characterised luminal A early breast cancer. The purpose of this study is to see whether a specialised laboratory test (Prosigna (PAM50) Assay) of breast cancer tissue can be used to choose women who can safely avoid radiation therapy because there is a low risk of the cancer coming back. New Zealand sites are Waikato Hospital, Christchurch Hospital, Wellington Hospital and Palmerston North Hospital.
Clinical trials are an essential part of our health system and are necessary to find out if new treatments are more effective than those currently accepted as standard of care. New breast cancer treatments (e.g. surgery, radiotherapy and drug therapies) and care must be thoroughly tested through the clinical trials or research process before they are made widely available to breast cancer patients. Thanks to trials, we’ve developed effective prevention and treatment strategies and breast cancer screening programmes using mammograms.
National cancer support service Look Good Feel Better continues to evolve its free programme to offer a diverse range of wellbeing sessions including both in-community and online classes, expert Q&As and podcasts. Navigating cancer can be as daunting emotionally and mentally as it is to physically deal with prognosis and treatment, so the programme is aimed at boosting confidence and provides an opportunity to connect with others who truly understand what you are going through.
We asked Metavivor Tania Honey to describe this online peer support group for people with advanced breast cancer. Here’s her take:
1. We all have a Stage 4 breast cancer diagnosis and I believe live or have lived in NZ at some point
2. It's a private page. Not any Tom, Dick or Mary can join. It gives you an extra feeling of safety that only other Metavivors are on this site.
