Women battle 'aggressive' breast cancer

HARTFORD, Conn. (WTNH) -- There are an increasing number of women surviving breast cancer.

News 8 Medical Reporter Jocelyn Maminta learned why more women are winning the battle against a more 'aggressive' form of breast cancer.

When doctors tell you "you have stage 4 breast cancer " it's a scary and emotional time, knowing that there is no stage 5.

However, women like Susan Cipollone are surviving thanks to targeted therapies.

Yearly breast cancer screenings showed no signs of cancer for Cipollone who had no family history, but that all changed last year.

"This is it. I'm not going to see my next birthday, I'm not going to see grandchildren," said Cipollone. "What showed up in 2011 was a tumor the size of a lemon."

The diagnosis was stage 4 of an aggressive form of breast cancer.

"I also had the Hr 2 protein in my cancer cells," Cipollone said.

That had already spread into her liver.

"These are cancers that there probably is a mutation and that mutation triggers the cell growth and it's almost explosive growth," said Dr. Stacy Nerenstone.

Cancer Specialist Dr. Nerenstone at Gray Cancer Center at Hartford Hospital prescribed a targeted drug for Cipollone.

"Herceptin was really a game changer," said Dr. Nerenstone.

Truly a life changer for women like Cipollone.

"In those patients in particular, we've had very astounding success, where this cancer is no longer a death sentence," said Dr. Nerenstone.

"After being on Herceptin for a very short period of time, it totally eradicated the cancer in the liver" Cipollone said.

Chemotherapy and Herceptin have her looking forward to planning for tomorrow.

"I believe in miracles," she said. "My doctor believes in medicine."

A potent combination.

"If it gets to a point where the Herceptin is no longer effective, we now have two or three options for treatment," Dr. Nerenstone said, "what I tell my patients with stage 4 cancer."

The doctor continued on to say, "we can't cure it in 2012 although we can treat it, but we don't know about 2013, 2014."

Cipollone also had a mastectomy. Her breast cancer is now being treated as a chronic disease.

She is given the drug Herceptin, intravenously, once every three weeks. And that will continue until the drug is no longer effective.