Hi folks
I know I should talk to my doctor about this and will but hoped to hear some peoples' experiences...
They originally thought I had stage 1B so I opted to keep ovaries as I'm 39.
Post surgery biopsy turns out it is stage 3 grade 2 so now it's chemo, surgery to remove ovaries and omentum and radiotherapy.
I've got a road ahead as I'm only 2 chemo sessions in, and I'm trying to take things one thing at a time
However, in quite daunted by the thought of HRT as it seems really hard to get it right. And surgical menopause sounds really harsh. I'm even more scared that I won't be allowed to have it or at least for a while incase cancer comes back.
I also know I'll need maintenance megace too.
I'm worried I'm going to be stuck between being fat and depressed or the cancer coming back to be honest.
I'm really missing other people's experiences. My long journey through endometriosis taught me the value of sharing experiences to make sense of things. So I'd be so appreciative if anyone had experiences to share.
Thanks ladies!
Claire
Hi Claire,
I am sorry to hear of your journey with endometrial cancer. I hope that your chemo is going ok and that you are not experiencing too many side effects. If you do, then I recommend speaking to your nurses, as I found with most things they could give medication to help.
My oncologist was against any form of HRT. My cancer was positive for oestrogen and progesterone so any HRT could effectively mean the cancer could return.
However it is worth seeing how your menopausal symptoms actually are and then talking things through with your doctor. There may be alternatives to HRT and you may be suitable for topical HRT eg; creams or even the patches. We are not medically trained on here so these are just suggestions, but may be worth asking.
My chemo finished in August 2022 and I would still say that I am not completely over it. I am far better than I was but I do, at times have some lingering after effects. With the radiotherapy also- I still have some lingering effects. It may be that the menopausal symptoms, once settled are manageable but you may not find out until after your treatments have finished and you have time to recover.
Being prepared and asking questions though is a really good idea. At my GP surgery the practice nurses do a menopause clinic which can offer support and advice so it may be worth asking when treatment is over.
With taking Megace- it is already a hormone treatment (link below) so am not sure how this would work if oestrogen was taken along side of it. So it really needs to be a discussion with you oncologist in the future, as they know your medical history, the specific details of your womb cancer and then it would be about weighing up the pros and cons for you and making an informed decision.
Megestrol acetate (Megace®) | Macmillan Cancer Support
If you want some advice from one of the nurses on here, you could call the Support Line and talk things through with them. The number is below.
Hope this helps a bit
Jane
