Travel post chemo

Hi Jo72,

Thanks for getting in touch with us and welcome to the online community.  My name is Adrienne and I’m one of the Cancer Information Nurse Specialists at Macmillan.

I see that you joined our breast cancer forum.  I really hope that you are finding it a helpful and supportive environment.

It’s completely understandable that you would want a holiday to look forward to, especially given that you’ve had to cancel plans already.  You’ve done the right thing by running this past your treatment team.  They are the ones who are best placed to advise on whether travelling on a long-haul flight would be safe for you to do. 

As you had your mastectomy in January, from a surgical point of view it should be absolutely fine to fly in October. 

Something to think about though is the risk of a blood clot.  We know that sitting still for long periods of time increases the risk of a clot, but there are also certain cancer treatments that can increase this risk further.  These include hormone therapies such as tamoxifen.  You may also be more at risk if you have a personal or family history of blood clots.

Before you travel, ask your cancer doctor or specialist nurse about your risk of a blood clot.

They can tell you about anything you should do to reduce your risk while travelling – for example, they may give you advice about taking aspirin before a long flight.

Ask them if you should wear compression stockings for travel. These are below-the-knee stockings that keep gentle pressure on your legs and help blood flow. They are important if you are going on a flight of 4 hours or more.

Make sure your compression stockings are properly measured and fitted for you. You can ask your nurse or a pharmacist for advice.

Here are some other tips:

• Book an aisle seat, especially on flights, to make it easier to move around.
• Wear loose-fitting, comfortable clothing, especially around the waist and groin.
• When sitting, exercise your legs, feet and toes about every 30 minutes.
• Walk around when you can – try to walk up and down the aisles for a few minutes every hour.
• Try some upper body and breathing exercises – these also help improve your circulation.
• Avoid taking sleeping pills.
• Drink plenty of water, especially during flights.
• Avoid drinking too much alcohol or caffeine – these can dehydrate you.

It might be helpful to look at our information on travel by clicking here and I have also added in some information on cancer and buying travel insurance.  It might also help to talk to other people about travel insurance with cancer cover on the online community.  We have a monthly travel insurance blog and a forum about travel insurance for people with cancer at macmillan.org.uk/travelinsurancegroup.

I wish you all the best with your plans and hope everything goes smoothly.

Take care and best wishes,

Adrienne

You can also speak with the Macmillan Support Line team of experts. Phone free on 0808 808 0000 (7 days a week, 8am-8pm) or send us an email. 

Ref: AMc/Kha