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There really was no effective chemotherapy for breast cancer 50 years ago. That was pretty much the day of delayed diagnosis and radical mastectomy. We've come a long way since then!
Yes! People beat cancer today!
Yep, that's what she had. I had forgotten. A radical mastectomy. My mother freaked when she tried to change the bandages. Mom actuallly peed on herself, she was so frightened. And was just mortified. My grandmother had to go through that all by herself, really. She lived in a city far from us.
I get what you are saying about not trying. I have had a rough few days, low energy, mild stomach upset, just feeling drained. Walking about the house makes me out of breath, although today things are getting better. It would be easy to say, never mind, I don't want to do this...but in the end it's just a handful of months and hopefully I will live a long, healthy life for committing to this.
I hope you do, too, honey!! Despite my fears of the chemo, I actually feel much better now than I have for years. I think I've been sick for a long time and didn't know it. Everyone says I look fabulous, like I've lost a ton of weight. I have, actually.
I like your phrase "it's just a handful of months."
>> You do need to be "cleaned out" for the colonoscopy, but there is no reason to need to do that for the port insertion that I can see. You will just be asked not to eat or drink anything for several hours before the anesthesia
Am I confused about this? What they're stipulating is:
I bet I am misreading the document regarding the port meds. They look like they're crossed out. I just emailed my oncology nurse to get this straightened out. Thanks for noticing what is probably my error.
Glad we caught it before you went through that unnecessarily!
For the colonoscopy, be sure to follow the diet instructions carefully. A good prep is important.
I am currently reading "The Emperor of All Maladies" which the author (an oncologist) described as a "life history of cancer." It is fascinating! The radical mastectomy is probably 100 yrs old; they even took ribs at one time, trying to cut out all the cancer.
Large-scale trials have long since proved that the survival rates of chemotherapy, lumpectomy, and radiation combos are the same if not better than the older radical procedures. They also give a better quality if life.
This is not a book to read while going through treatment but maybe later. My friend w/breast cancer is happily living her life now. So will you, one day!
Is it really true that people go through this, and live out their natural lives? Things have gotten so much better since 50 years ago?
Just detecting cancer is so much better today compared to 50 years ago. 50 years ago, I doubt they caught much of anything at stage I or II. Treatment was brutal. My mother's aunt was discovered to have breast cancer probably about 50 years ago and endured a double mastectomy. There was no discussion with family about how early or late they caught it, treatment options, etc. Just removed the diseased part and that was that.
My mother is a ten year survivor (caught at stage IIb) and her sister is about...oh at least 5 years out from diagnosis (I think she was IIa, like me). They are both leading very normal lives now. My mother designs websites and my aunt owns a store. Their lives are pretty normal. My mom is done with her post-treatment hormone therapy; I think my aunt is almost done. They are both in their 50s.
I work at a nursing home and we admit residents when they are old (70s, 80, and 90s) with past histories of cancer. They dealt with it, beat it (often in their 50s and 60s), and now need care due to more typical old-age complaints (heart disease, arthritis, etc.). It doesn't feel like it now, but life does go on and eventually this will be nothing but a memory. I cannot wait for that day, personally...
Oh, okay. That's what I'm feeling. I've got two small surgeries, even before the chemo starts, a cholonoscopy and the putting in of the port. Both are proceeded with drinking this stuff which cleans you out, which is the most unpleasant part.
It's an intrusion of one's body. It's hard to allow people to do that to you. I don't want to do this but I don't see that I have a choice. It would be a shame not to try and then die of cancer if I don't have to.
I'm also wondering if, long term, I shouldn't move to Houston--where they have the MD Cancer Center--or to Denver, where they have medical marijuana dispensaries. I'm not going to smoke anything, ever, again, but if I'm going to die anyway, it would be nice to have some mj cookies or something.
He eats some mj cookies during chemo, and walks out of there feeling intensely spiritual and good. I remember that feeling and want that again.
I'm afraid you're focusing too much on the negatives and neglecting the positives. This will not be very helpful to your recovery. Just read through the posts of those who have been supporting you - (not the negative stuff, okay?) - and see how many survivors are right here in this little thread.
Your grandmother lived in a terrible time to have cancer. Late diagnoses, ergo late treatment, and it was bound to be terminal. In 50 years, a cancer diagnosis is not necessarily a death sentence. Especially when you've been told that the cancer was contained and excised.
I'm a pragmatist by nature. I'm never panicked, no matter the news, until it becomes the only option. But until and unless they tell me that I should wind up my affairs, I'm going to rely on how I feel today. And other than a severe allergy attack - damn! - I feel pretty good.
Try thinking that all the modalities that have gone before have been warm-ups for the treatment that exists today. The treatment you're going to receive. Treatment that won't be nearly as bad as you anticipate. Treatment that has been refined through years of research, and trial and error, and correction, and refining.
As far as having a colonoscopy, as invasive as it is, is one of the best things you can do for yourself. And again, the anticipation is far worse than the actual event. I know this for a fact, as I'm an old hand at it. Do I look forward to the next one? Of course not. But it's a lot easier than root canal!
I hope you can find a baker to whip you up some Alice B. Toklas brownies.
>> It doesn't feel like it now, but life does go on and eventually this will be nothing but a memory. I cannot wait for that day, personally...
>> I hope you can find a baker to whip you up some Alice B. Toklas brownies.
So nice to wake up to positive remarks like these. I *do* feel hopeful, and better. A lot of good things have happened over the past few days: not having to take the GoLightly for the port surgery, getting a beautiful wig, getting rides to the cancer-related appointments from the ACS, finding a new assistant, getting off the heavy codeine meds. I think I've got everything organized down to the smaller detail.
No Toklas brownies in Texas. Maybe, when this is all clear, I can move to a state where that's possible.
Now if I could just keep my arms from falling asleep when I sleep at night. I don't know what that's about.
My arms would ache. I'd also get dizzy from time to time. My joints would hurt really bad. My eyes didn't focus as well. A side effect was short term hearing loss, that didn't seem to effect me. I never had the desire for using the devil's lettuce or Alice's brownies.
I couldn't walk, but I could still walk, albeit slowly. The ache in the arms went away. The dizzy spells left as soon as I was finished with chemo. There were times when I didn't want to continue and finding good veins became more difficult... But I finished.
Medical marijuana is not yet legalized in my state (something that cancer turned me into a huge advocate/activist about), but it is decriminalized under 1oz. I had many a conversation about it with my care team. The word was that they couldn't officially tell me to use it, but that they saw no health issues with partaking in smokeless ways (edibles or vaporizer) and that the sheer amount of anti-anxiety, anti-depression, pain meds, and sleep medications that I was on posed a much more significant health risk. My oncologist (in his 80s) told me, and I quote, "I will go to bat for you if it comes to it".
I think it helped that my team got to know me very well (when you're the youngest in a cancer center and have a penchant for bringing your team baked goods and wearing silly PJs, you tend to get a lot of attention) so they knew what would work best for me. They also knew that I have absolutely no problem advocating for myself and my community, so I think they thought encouraging me to speak out about something THEY know to be useful in treating the side effects of chemo/cancer would give me a different drive and allow me to say what they can't due to their positions.
I got a really rare reaction to vinblastine that meant SERIOUS nerve pain in my jaw, occasionally my outer thigh, and severe neuropathy (which meant I took quite a few tumbles and got more skinned knees in 4 months than I have my entire life!) on top of the bone pain from the tumors in my bones dying off and the general aches and pains of chemo and inactivity. It was take a handful of pills that would make me feel like a zombie and didn't always work or do something illegal but under supervision of my doctor. It was an easy choice for me, but I respect others' decisions either way.
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