Confused if I’m going ahead with chemo !!!!

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Hi there, My first time in this forum I’m so confused ! I had surgery 13th November mastectomy and was told by surgeon that I ll have radio and tamoxifen as treatment . Yesterday I saw oncologist and was advised to have 2 weekly chemo for 4 cycles and another 2 weekly for 4 weeks of another drug, was told that it will lower the recurrence by 11% if I have this due to higher grade and the size of the tumour that’s been  removed . I have until Monday to decide if I’m going through , I’m still in shock and can get my head around it . I’m dreading the side effect of chemo . 
Any advise will be much appreciated . Thanks . 

  • Hi  and a very warm welcome to the Community but sorry to hear about your diagnoses.

    Navigating the cancer journey can be such a stressful and challenging time but getting support from people who have walked the ‘exact same' cancer journey can help a lot. (I have a completely different cancer).

    The New to Community is like our reception desk where we look to direct you to the best part of the Community for you to get support. The Community is divided into dedicated Cancer Support Groups (Discussion Rooms) so can I recommend you join and post in our dedicated Breast Cancer support group. This is a safe place to talk to others with a similar diagnosis, treatment experience, to ask questions and get support.

    To connect in with the group click on this link > Breast cancer then once the group page opens click on “Click to Join” when the black banner appears or “Join” under “Group Tools” (this all depends on the device you are using)

    When you are ready you can introduce yourself by clicking “+new” or “+” in the top right next to the group title. You can copy and paste the text from this post into your new post.

    It’s a challenging time for you so you may want to use the Macmillan Support Line is open 8am-8pm (timings may differ across services) 7 days a week on 0808 808 00 00. This service provides cancer information, practical information, emotional support, benefits/financial guidance or just a listening ear.

    We also have our Ask an Expert section but do allow a few working days for a reply.

    Talking to people face to face can be very helpful so do check to see if you have any Local Macmillan Support in your area, do also check for a local Maggie's Centre as these folks are amazing and give support to all the family.

    Do get back to me if you need further help navigating the community.

    Mike (Thehighlander)

    It always seems impossible until its done - Nelson Mandela

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  • My son has cancer, not breast of course, and we dreaded the side effects of chemo. It turned out to be not too bad at all. He has been a bit nauseous today, which is day 8 of round 2. Also tired , low appetite, and nausea but not too bad the first 4/5 days of each round. All unpleasant, but not what we dreaded. Of course the drugs used for chemo differ widely depending on what cancer you have, but they are often life saving. Nowadays they have excellent anti nausea drugs that can almost take it away altogether. My son was given an ice lolly to suck ( a kind of "cold mouth" to prevent mouth sores. And you can usually get a cold cap if you ask the nurses in advance. Women with him got those to help prevent hair loss. He refused as he doesn't mind the hair loss that much, though it has definitely started to fall out  in the last 4 days or so.

  • PS I'm sorry to say the chemo (CAP) also caused quite bad constipation. You will need prunes/chia seeds/bran

  • Thank you for taking the time to give me reassurance on deciding to whether to have chemo or not . This give me enlightenment with the others comments as well . Good luck and hoping for your son’s smooth recovery .