How many stage 3A have done Interferon?

Just look through the archives or do a search in the profiles.  MANY have done Interferon.  It is still the only FDA approved treatment for stage III melanoma and has been the only treatment for many years.  There are some who have done clinical trials, some biochemotherapy and some GMCSF.  But the majority of stage III individuals who decide to do treatment do Interferon.  With some of the new treatments coming out recently, there might be hope for another adjuvant therapy for stage III in the future, but for now Interferon is still the only approved treatment.  In general, I don't think there is a huge difference in those selecting this treatment that are stage IIIA/B or C — stage IIIA probably does the treatment as often as the other stages.  Some institutions no longer offer Interferon because they feel the benefits do not justify the side effects   experienced.  This is definitely a personal decision.  Just do your own research and decide what's best for you.

Best wishes,

Janner

Just look through the archives or do a search in the profiles.  MANY have done Interferon.  It is still the only FDA approved treatment for stage III melanoma and has been the only treatment for many years.  There are some who have done clinical trials, some biochemotherapy and some GMCSF.  But the majority of stage III individuals who decide to do treatment do Interferon.  With some of the new treatments coming out recently, there might be hope for another adjuvant therapy for stage III in the future, but for now Interferon is still the only approved treatment.  In general, I don't think there is a huge difference in those selecting this treatment that are stage IIIA/B or C — stage IIIA probably does the treatment as often as the other stages.  Some institutions no longer offer Interferon because they feel the benefits do not justify the side effects   experienced.  This is definitely a personal decision.  Just do your own research and decide what's best for you.

Best wishes,

Janner

Just look through the archives or do a search in the profiles.  MANY have done Interferon.  It is still the only FDA approved treatment for stage III melanoma and has been the only treatment for many years.  There are some who have done clinical trials, some biochemotherapy and some GMCSF.  But the majority of stage III individuals who decide to do treatment do Interferon.  With some of the new treatments coming out recently, there might be hope for another adjuvant therapy for stage III in the future, but for now Interferon is still the only approved treatment.  In general, I don't think there is a huge difference in those selecting this treatment that are stage IIIA/B or C — stage IIIA probably does the treatment as often as the other stages.  Some institutions no longer offer Interferon because they feel the benefits do not justify the side effects   experienced.  This is definitely a personal decision.  Just do your own research and decide what's best for you.

Best wishes,

Janner

I chose wait and watch because the benefits just didn't seem to be there.  But I agree with Janner, it's a very personal decision.  The MIF wesite has an excellent article, do a search under Stage 3 for

Comprehensive article of decision making for interferon.

Mary

I chose wait and watch because the benefits just didn't seem to be there.  But I agree with Janner, it's a very personal decision.  The MIF wesite has an excellent article, do a search under Stage 3 for

Comprehensive article of decision making for interferon.

Mary

I chose wait and watch because the benefits just didn't seem to be there.  But I agree with Janner, it's a very personal decision.  The MIF wesite has an excellent article, do a search under Stage 3 for

Comprehensive article of decision making for interferon.

Mary

Melissa,

I did a year of interferon from April 09 to April 10.  I am 4 1/2 years NED.  I'll never know if interferon helped with that or not, but for me it was a no brainer.  I'm not the type to not do anything.  I figured as long as interferon didn't kill me, it was worth it.  The year was hard, but I still had good times and vacations and I worked so it wasn't all bad.  If I had been older and my family was grown I may have made a different decision, but the key is that once you make up your mind don't ever look back and play the "what if" game. 

Amy S. in Michigan

Melissa,

I did a year of interferon from April 09 to April 10.  I am 4 1/2 years NED.  I'll never know if interferon helped with that or not, but for me it was a no brainer.  I'm not the type to not do anything.  I figured as long as interferon didn't kill me, it was worth it.  The year was hard, but I still had good times and vacations and I worked so it wasn't all bad.  If I had been older and my family was grown I may have made a different decision, but the key is that once you make up your mind don't ever look back and play the "what if" game. 

Amy S. in Michigan

Melissa,

I did a year of interferon from April 09 to April 10.  I am 4 1/2 years NED.  I'll never know if interferon helped with that or not, but for me it was a no brainer.  I'm not the type to not do anything.  I figured as long as interferon didn't kill me, it was worth it.  The year was hard, but I still had good times and vacations and I worked so it wasn't all bad.  If I had been older and my family was grown I may have made a different decision, but the key is that once you make up your mind don't ever look back and play the "what if" game. 

Amy S. in Michigan

Melissa,

Agree with the above posts, interferon is a very personal decision and honestly the studies are so inconclusive that there really is no wrong answer.  Since there are two NED post above I felt obligated to reply that I did progress to stage IV after interferon (from IIIB).  I did interferon from Dec 11 to Dec 12 and progressed to stage IV in May 13.  The good news is I am back to being NED after surgery.  Did the interferon help?   Might I not even be here now if I hadn't taken interferon?  These are questions I'll never know the answer to.  Is interferon a cake walk?  No.  Is it manageable? Yes.  Other than the month of HD I was still able to live my life and enjoy my kids.  My advice would be find a good melanoma specialist, make yourself as smart as you can be, make a decision and don't look back. 

Brian  

Melissa,

Agree with the above posts, interferon is a very personal decision and honestly the studies are so inconclusive that there really is no wrong answer.  Since there are two NED post above I felt obligated to reply that I did progress to stage IV after interferon (from IIIB).  I did interferon from Dec 11 to Dec 12 and progressed to stage IV in May 13.  The good news is I am back to being NED after surgery.  Did the interferon help?   Might I not even be here now if I hadn't taken interferon?  These are questions I'll never know the answer to.  Is interferon a cake walk?  No.  Is it manageable? Yes.  Other than the month of HD I was still able to live my life and enjoy my kids.  My advice would be find a good melanoma specialist, make yourself as smart as you can be, make a decision and don't look back. 

Brian  

Melissa,

Agree with the above posts, interferon is a very personal decision and honestly the studies are so inconclusive that there really is no wrong answer.  Since there are two NED post above I felt obligated to reply that I did progress to stage IV after interferon (from IIIB).  I did interferon from Dec 11 to Dec 12 and progressed to stage IV in May 13.  The good news is I am back to being NED after surgery.  Did the interferon help?   Might I not even be here now if I hadn't taken interferon?  These are questions I'll never know the answer to.  Is interferon a cake walk?  No.  Is it manageable? Yes.  Other than the month of HD I was still able to live my life and enjoy my kids.  My advice would be find a good melanoma specialist, make yourself as smart as you can be, make a decision and don't look back. 

Brian  

Its a really caustic treatment.  I could not tolerate the high dose interferon.  I was only 4 or 5 days into it before I ended up in the hospital to have it flushed out of me.  That also makes me unable to tolerate IL2.   

Good luck in making your decision.

Cindy VT

Its a really caustic treatment.  I could not tolerate the high dose interferon.  I was only 4 or 5 days into it before I ended up in the hospital to have it flushed out of me.  That also makes me unable to tolerate IL2.   

Good luck in making your decision.

Cindy VT

Its a really caustic treatment.  I could not tolerate the high dose interferon.  I was only 4 or 5 days into it before I ended up in the hospital to have it flushed out of me.  That also makes me unable to tolerate IL2.   

Good luck in making your decision.

Cindy VT

I did interferon at stage 2c.  It was the most unpleasant thing I have ever done, but I finished the 4 week high dose and the 12 month self injection low dose.

I knew about the inconclusive studies about extended survivablity before starting treatment.  Since it was the only treatment available for my stage at the time I elected to do it.  Like it has been stated in this thread, it was a personal choice for me.  The thought of my son growing up without a father was a deciding factor.  Maybe it helped or maybe it did nothing.  I would rather go down fighting.  Given the information I had at that time, I would still have made the same decision.

MikeWI

stage 2c, currently still NED

I did interferon at stage 2c.  It was the most unpleasant thing I have ever done, but I finished the 4 week high dose and the 12 month self injection low dose.

I knew about the inconclusive studies about extended survivablity before starting treatment.  Since it was the only treatment available for my stage at the time I elected to do it.  Like it has been stated in this thread, it was a personal choice for me.  The thought of my son growing up without a father was a deciding factor.  Maybe it helped or maybe it did nothing.  I would rather go down fighting.  Given the information I had at that time, I would still have made the same decision.

MikeWI

stage 2c, currently still NED

I did interferon at stage 2c.  It was the most unpleasant thing I have ever done, but I finished the 4 week high dose and the 12 month self injection low dose.

I knew about the inconclusive studies about extended survivablity before starting treatment.  Since it was the only treatment available for my stage at the time I elected to do it.  Like it has been stated in this thread, it was a personal choice for me.  The thought of my son growing up without a father was a deciding factor.  Maybe it helped or maybe it did nothing.  I would rather go down fighting.  Given the information I had at that time, I would still have made the same decision.

MikeWI

stage 2c, currently still NED

Hi Melissa,

My mel was only 1.06, not ulcerated and lymph node biopsy found only 1 Micro Met, so I'm 3A.  My Dr at MCV/VCU did not think the trauma of Interferon was warranted.  I did my own research and found survival was not significantly increased with Interferon, so we did the scan, check, watch and wait approach.

My 5 year anniversary was last Sept. and I'm still NED!  We'll see in 5 years if I made the right call.

Mike

Hi Melissa,

My mel was only 1.06, not ulcerated and lymph node biopsy found only 1 Micro Met, so I'm 3A.  My Dr at MCV/VCU did not think the trauma of Interferon was warranted.  I did my own research and found survival was not significantly increased with Interferon, so we did the scan, check, watch and wait approach.

My 5 year anniversary was last Sept. and I'm still NED!  We'll see in 5 years if I made the right call.

Mike

Hi Melissa,

My mel was only 1.06, not ulcerated and lymph node biopsy found only 1 Micro Met, so I'm 3A.  My Dr at MCV/VCU did not think the trauma of Interferon was warranted.  I did my own research and found survival was not significantly increased with Interferon, so we did the scan, check, watch and wait approach.

My 5 year anniversary was last Sept. and I'm still NED!  We'll see in 5 years if I made the right call.

Mike

My daughter was diagnosed IIIb and did biochemotherapy which includes interferon, interleukin 2 and 3 chemo drugs.  Would your doctor consider that treatment?

My daughter was diagnosed IIIb and did biochemotherapy which includes interferon, interleukin 2 and 3 chemo drugs.  Would your doctor consider that treatment?

My daughter was diagnosed IIIb and did biochemotherapy which includes interferon, interleukin 2 and 3 chemo drugs.  Would your doctor consider that treatment?

Kathy,

Just curious, was your daughter's melanoma resectable?  Was she NED when she did this treatment?

Brian

Kathy,

Just curious, was your daughter's melanoma resectable?  Was she NED when she did this treatment?

Brian

Kathy,

Just curious, was your daughter's melanoma resectable?  Was she NED when she did this treatment?

Brian

I'm IIIb, NED for over 4 years. I did the one month high dose only. My onco told me that the side effects would make it nigh impossible for me to do my job (college dean) for a year and that my odds were unlikely to change with the low dose/1 year routine. As everyone else has stated, we all have choices and circumstances.

During the 1 month I did go stark raving mad for a couple of days (hallucinatory/suicidal). Had to miss 1 or 2 doses and go on psychiatric meds. Looking back, I should have been put on those meds a month or two before starting INF, not after symptoms started. I think they made little or no difference–my mind needed a respite from INF. I've never had such symptoms, but I'd suggest anyone considering the high dose ask for a consult with a mental health specialist, ESPECIALLY if they've had symptoms in the past.

Good luck.

I'm IIIb, NED for over 4 years. I did the one month high dose only. My onco told me that the side effects would make it nigh impossible for me to do my job (college dean) for a year and that my odds were unlikely to change with the low dose/1 year routine. As everyone else has stated, we all have choices and circumstances.

During the 1 month I did go stark raving mad for a couple of days (hallucinatory/suicidal). Had to miss 1 or 2 doses and go on psychiatric meds. Looking back, I should have been put on those meds a month or two before starting INF, not after symptoms started. I think they made little or no difference–my mind needed a respite from INF. I've never had such symptoms, but I'd suggest anyone considering the high dose ask for a consult with a mental health specialist, ESPECIALLY if they've had symptoms in the past.

Good luck.

I'm IIIb, NED for over 4 years. I did the one month high dose only. My onco told me that the side effects would make it nigh impossible for me to do my job (college dean) for a year and that my odds were unlikely to change with the low dose/1 year routine. As everyone else has stated, we all have choices and circumstances.

During the 1 month I did go stark raving mad for a couple of days (hallucinatory/suicidal). Had to miss 1 or 2 doses and go on psychiatric meds. Looking back, I should have been put on those meds a month or two before starting INF, not after symptoms started. I think they made little or no difference–my mind needed a respite from INF. I've never had such symptoms, but I'd suggest anyone considering the high dose ask for a consult with a mental health specialist, ESPECIALLY if they've had symptoms in the past.

Good luck.

Hi,

You've already gotten a lot of replies and I know it can be frustrating to hear that "it's a presonal decision", but it really is. You have to decide what your comfort level is with watch and wait vs trying a treatment even if there's some question about if/how well it might work. It is a year of your life and it's not fun, but it is doable. I was a IIIb at diagnosis and was given the option of interferon or not and for me it came down to being more comfortable with trying and having it fail than questioning if I should have tried/if it might have prevented progression if I progressed sometime down the road. I did progress, shortly after finishing the year, but do not regrett trying with the interferon. Maybe it had some benefit, maybe not. Think about it, and you, and make the decision you are most comfortable with.

Hi,

You've already gotten a lot of replies and I know it can be frustrating to hear that "it's a presonal decision", but it really is. You have to decide what your comfort level is with watch and wait vs trying a treatment even if there's some question about if/how well it might work. It is a year of your life and it's not fun, but it is doable. I was a IIIb at diagnosis and was given the option of interferon or not and for me it came down to being more comfortable with trying and having it fail than questioning if I should have tried/if it might have prevented progression if I progressed sometime down the road. I did progress, shortly after finishing the year, but do not regrett trying with the interferon. Maybe it had some benefit, maybe not. Think about it, and you, and make the decision you are most comfortable with.

Hi,

You've already gotten a lot of replies and I know it can be frustrating to hear that "it's a presonal decision", but it really is. You have to decide what your comfort level is with watch and wait vs trying a treatment even if there's some question about if/how well it might work. It is a year of your life and it's not fun, but it is doable. I was a IIIb at diagnosis and was given the option of interferon or not and for me it came down to being more comfortable with trying and having it fail than questioning if I should have tried/if it might have prevented progression if I progressed sometime down the road. I did progress, shortly after finishing the year, but do not regrett trying with the interferon. Maybe it had some benefit, maybe not. Think about it, and you, and make the decision you are most comfortable with.