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Double mastecomy and chemo
Hello Everyone!
I had a double mastectomy 7 weeks ago. I was diagnosed with stage 2A invasive micro papillary carcinoma. My lymph nodes were negative and tumor margins were also negative. My Oncotype score came back as 27 which was a surprise to everyone, given all the negative margins. I will be doing HT, but the oncologist said i needed 4 rounds of chemo. That really caught me off guard. I am still trying to make my decision whether or not to do chemo. Chemo only gives me a 12% increase in non recurrence. Which puts me at 15% recurrence over 10 years. I know chemo can really be hard on the body. What has anyone in this group experienced with chemo Good or bad? I’ve been looking for integrative support during chemo, but no one in my area really offers it. I think my question is, is the chemo worth it?
Thank you!
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My wife did it.2A also.Do it.It isn't that bad.
Thank you!
I had double mastectomy almost 3 yrs ago for stage 1 (R) and 2 (L) ILC, no nodes, clear margins; followed by 4 rounds chemo (3 wks apart) and 16 rounds radiation (L only). When you are in it, it is not fun, but it actually was not as hard as I expected. It is not like you see in the movies. Take the anti-nausea meds (I tried to avoid them, regretted it), stay ahead of it, rest, WALK daily no matter what even out to the driveway and back, fresh air, sipping broth, comfy bed. Of course the worst part is losing hair, but to be honest, once it was done falling out, it was freeing. I've told friends every woman should shave their head once in their life (hopefully by choice, not illness) ... it is absolutely freeing. I would do it all again if I needed to. Best wishes to you.
@deb23 thank you!
Did you have any side effects like neuropathy?
I did not have any neuropathy. I don't know if this is what helped, but I did wear ice pack gloves, booties, and cap.
Gloves and Booties:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B086VP3N2J?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title&th=1
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09TKTRLXZ?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title&th=1
I believe these really helped me avoid neuropathy. They were a little TOO cold, so I wore THIN cotton gloves and THIN cotton socks with them, just to avoid direct contact with skin. Plus, I got spare sets of each, took them with me in a small cooler, and swapped them out halfway through my infusion. Kind of expensive, but well worth it.
Cap:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06ZY6348Q?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title&th=1
I did not want to pay for the medical-grade cold cap and nurse, my insurance didn't provide very good coverage if any. So I ordered this "migraine" cap from Amazon, and a spare set of gel packs that came with me to chemo, frozen and ready in small cooler. I have no way of knowing for sure, but I feel the cap helped preserve my hair follicles or something ... even though I still lost my hair, it has come back as thick as it ever was.
Of course there is no PROOF that any of this actually helped me, maybe I would have had the same results without it. This is all just my experience and opinion. 🙂
@deb23 thank you so much for sharing your experience. I think i would consider the ice packs. Do whatever helps.