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Breast Cancer Treatment: Surviving Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is a word that strikes fear into most of our
hearts. We've seen the movies and heard such horrible stories
about undergoing this difficult treatment for a disease that
could very well kill us. I underwent chemo for breast cancer and
know that, in some cases, the cancer isn't hard ... it isn't
painful ... it doesn't make us sick. That's the case for most of
us who have breast cancer, but don't have distant metastases.
But then, they say we need to do chemo and we know we'll feel
that.
Although chemo drugs haven't changed that much, and they're
still terribly hard on our bodies, the management drugs have
changed a lot. Chemotherapy, for many of us, isn't the
show-stopper we thought it would be. Of course, each of us is
different and the chemo drugs affect each of us in different
ways, but, for the most part, chemo is definitely doable.
My breast cancer was Stage IIIa, with a 5.8 cm tumor, 8 of 10
lymph nodes positive, and I was only 39 years old. That bought
me a ticket for the chemo ride. And I was scared out of my wits.
But, I found an online breast cancer support group, at WebMD,
and those women told me everything to expect and more. I went
through four rounds of adriamycin and cytoxan. Both of them are
some pretty stout breast cancer chemo drugs. After that, I did a
controversial treatment that involved extremely high doses of
cytoxan, taxol, and cisplatin, so I learned quite a bit about
surviving chemotherapy.
First of all, I would highly recommend getting a port. This is a
line that goes into a vein in your chest, the entrance to which
sits just under your skin, right below your collarbone. It
requires a quick surgery to put it in but, if you're having a
mastectomy for your breast cancer, you can get the chemo port
put in at the same time. If you choose not to do that, you'll
have to get your chemo treatments through your veins and chemo
is really hard on your veins. This means that you will, most
likely, have to endure multiple attempts for them to find a
vein, as time goes by. With the port, it's already in a vein, so
all they have to do is stick the needle into the port to access
it. If you find this uncomfortable, there is a cream they can
give you called Emla cream. One of the first things I learned
was to tell them the moment I was uncomfortable. It's all
fixable. You'll put the Emla cream on a bit before you have to
have your port accessed and it'll numb your skin.
Most breast cancer chemotherapy drugs will cause your hair to
fall out. This is because chemo kills the rapidly dividing cells
in your body. Your mucous areas and hair follicles are affected
for this reason. That's why you may have nausea or develop mouth
or throat sores. Again, all this sounds scary, but is totally
manageable. Since you will probably be losing your hair, which
can be quite traumatic, I would advise going wig or hat shopping
before you even get your first chemo. Take a girlfriend with you
and be adventurous. Try on different styles, and even colors. If
you've always wanted to be a blonde, now's your chance! Make a
day of it and have fun with it. Goodness knows, you have to look
for that silver lining every chance you get. Also, make sure to
have your nausea med prescription filled before you go so you'll
have it waiting for you if you need it at home. You may be
pretty tired, afterward, so don't wait till then to get those
meds.
On your first chemo day, they will probably give you
some
steroids, intravenously or through your port, to help with the
nausea. This may make you hungry; it sure did for me! But, I
would recommend you don't eat your favorite food on chemo day.
Chemo is manageable, but after you're all done, you may find
that you have associations. For example, I used to love the
cucumber melon fragrance when I was going through chemo. I had
cucumber melon everything! But, to this day, the smell of
cucumber melon makes my stomach do a little somersault because
it reminds me of such an unpleasant time in my life. The same
can happen with food. I still can't look a chicken burrito in
the eye! But, I'm sure glad I didn't eat a taco because I
would've hated for that to be ruined for me!
Many breast cancer chemo drugs are hard on your bladder, so be
sure to drink, drink, drink. If you don't feel like drinking
water, then broth, jello, or even popsicles will help. Since
you've gotten your nausea meds all filled in advance, be sure to
take them as prescribed, whether you think you need them or not.
Chemo nausea isn't just any kind of nausea and it's much easier
to stay ahead of it than to try to fix it once it occurs. If you
do happen to get nauseated, and I can't stress this enough, call
your doctor!!! There are many, many nausea meds and you do not
have to feel sick just because you're doing chemo. Once they
find the right drug for you, it will be so much easier. So, do
not suffer this in silence! The same applies for if you get
sores in your mouth or throat.
You will be tired from this treatment. Most of us get more tired
as the treatments progress because they make our white blood
cell counts drop really low. Because of this, it's a good idea
to keep some Purell, or something similar, with you all the time
for use when you've had to touch, for example, public restroom
door handles. Your risk of infection will be much higher during
this time.
If you lose your hair, it will typically happen in 10-14 days
after your first chemo treatment. If you have long hair, you
might want to cut it short in preparation. I know I felt so out
of control of everything, during that time. When your hair comes
out, it lets go quickly and in large clumps, getting all over
your pillow and clogging your drain. For many women, that is
more traumatic than even losing a breast. So, I figured that was
the one thing I could control about this whole breast cancer
thing ... when my hair came out. I cut it really short,
beforehand and, when it started to let go, I had my husband get
the clippers and shave my head. My daughter helped and we did a
little Mohawk and stripe action first!
That was my way of shaking my fist at this cancer ... it might
take my breasts, and it might take my hair for a while, but I
beat it to the punch! It was my way of saying, "You cannot take
my spirit!" You can do the same thing. Your breast cancer does
not define you. It is but a speed bump in the course of your
life. Strap on your gloves and step into the ring. This chemo is
your biggest punch. Your spirit is your own and that breast
cancer can't touch it!
About the author:
Melissa Buhmeyer is a breast cancer survivor and has been so for
seven years. She is also the founder of http://www.breastcanc
er-treatment.us , a site focusing on breast cancer
treatment options, news, articles, and survivor experiences.
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