Breast cancer-free anniversaries

It truly is a case of mandatory due diligence for the breast cancer patient, isn't it? I had to put myself through a crash course in breast cancer after last year's Bad News Biopsy just to be able to ask the right questions and ensure that I understood the pitfalls and could agree only to a treatment plan that fit my own personal choices.

After my hair loss from chemo, my wig and hair lady who is licensed in hair and wigs and has decades of experience with cancer ladies recommended Nioxin shampoo and conditioner. It's available on Amazon and probably elsewhere. My hair is thinner than before, but I'm also 68. It's been 2 years and my hair is very healthy looking, shiny and soft. I'll probably continue to use Nioxin indefinitely alternating with one of those "purple" shampoos for gray hair.

My oncologist was great from the start! The first thing he told me was to cut off sugar and excess carbohydrates. I kept it the first 3 months but since the depression hit me and the chemo lasted for 6 months (I had heavy chemo and many symptoms - did chemo every week), I begun to eat some in order not to lose too much weight! But since ice cream and sweets are my comfort food it's difficult to cut off. Now that I am more calm and finished chemo and radiation , I'll start proper diet with an excellent nutritionist that understands me and tries to find subditutes for the cravings, but also keeps protein high and carbo low. Hope that I'll manage to keep off sugar!

I'm finding cutting out sugar hard. I was doing OK for a short as long as I'm keeping it out of the house. But dinner with friends who have no sugar issues and have dessert taxes my resolve. Or at least seems to trigger cravings. I know it's supposed to get easier but it's a challenge.

Let me know what the nutritionist recommends if she has any tips beyond just going through whatever withdrawal might occur and waiting it out. The harder it is to eliminate refined sugars, the more convinced I am that the anti-sugar science has merit so am determined to clean up dietary misbehavior and sure that I'll be healthier overall.

Good morning, @callaloo, Don’t be too hard on yourself with your mission to cut out sugar! I’ve fallen off the wagon a few times myself. Sugar is so addicting and difficult to avoid…especially when there’s something enticing put in front of me. Saying NO and sticking to that decision is really a test of endurance and resolve! 😂.
Throughout my cancer journey, I really had no craving for sugar anymore. Not even for dark chocolate! Gasp!!! Well, thank heaven’s that made a reappearance because a day without chocolate well…I didn’t fight this hard to go without at least one vice! I’ve had to give up wine and caffeine, so chocolate would have been too much to bear. I can pass up cake, pie, cheesecake, but I really struggle when cookies are put in front of me. Just one…surely, just one couldn’t hurt. Next thing you know a plate of chocolate chip cookies is reduced to a pile of crumps. My spirit’s willing but my flesh is weak and I end up eating more ‘junk’ for a few days until the guilt overcomes me and I ‘get religion’ again! 😅

My husband and I are pretty good about maintaining a Mediterranean type diet and seldom have desserts. Sweets at the end of the meal are some type of fresh fruit. My dietician isn’t recommending a keto diet for me because the extra protein is too much for my kidneys. So, everything healthy in moderation.

The switch to no sugar doesn’t have to be all or nothing. There are swaps that can be made when you want to indulge. I find eating just small one bite of a forbidden dessert is all I need!

Here’s an article that might be helpful. It explains why sugar is addictive, what it does to our body and offers ways to help wean off of sugar with lists of foods that are healthy for us along with lists of sugars! Sugar is sugar, no matter the name it goes by!
https://www.onnit.com/academy/the-no-sugar-diet-plan/
Good luck in your pursuit of sugar liberation. 🙂

Thank you so much, Lori! Friends without a sweet tooth don't get that it can be difficult to cut out sugar but we know differently. Im kind of reminding myself that cravings diminish only when not satisfied, kind of analogous to trying to quit smoking while still smoking versus just toughing it out for the first weeks.

I worked in finance when cigarette manufacturers were planning how to keep profits and sales up as smoking became less popular. One CEO explained that they bought up candy manufacturers and products of alcoholic beverages. In other words, they diversified their portfolios but kept the focus on 'addictive' consumer products. Though not calling them that at shareholders' meetings with the press present...

You're right about sugar, it's the worst food for everybody but especially for those who have cancer. But we still also have to watch out for carbs and food that has high glycemic index. The bad thing about sugar and carbs is the high glycemic index that they have (not all of them), it rises the blood sugar and the insulin wich is very good food for cancer cells! It's very important that you also know the right food combinations because carbohydrates are not metabolized always in the same way, it depends on what other food you combine them with. With the right combinations you can lower the glycemic index! Women with cancer, especially when in treatment need to have high protein intake and always many veggies, lots of water and carbs with low glycemic index. One trick is to eat whole grain pasta, rice, bread bc the fibers lower the glycemic index. Also protein (meat, fish, chicken) and veggies do that bc of the extra fibers. One of the tricks that she taught me was to have a small meal/snack every 3 hours so I don't get so hungry and eat junk food. Also there are many sweet products with stevia or other sweetener. Anyway you should find a good nutritionist that understands you and can help you. Mine was very helpful, bc she made me weekly diet according to my taste and the family weekly diet too, so it wasn't so hard to follow. I don't want to be a smartass and let me tell you that when I was in the middle of my chemo (I was having 4 medicines weekly, for 5,5 months, it was hard), I couldn't follow the diet. I mostly ate soups, tea, bananas and porridge. Hope I helped you. Can't really tell you about certain products since I live in Greece! Sorry for the long sheet.

I forgot to tell you the most important! She told that when I wanted chocolate I could make a hot (organic) cocoa with stevia and perhaps half a banana (like a smoothie) for the fibers and sip it slowly! In the summer I make it large with almond milk, banana and coffe. It was really good and the craving for chocolate would disappear. Magic! Or I could make a pudding/cream (with corn starch) with stevia and skimmed milk or almond milk, which was excellent also! I think mostly it's the habit of sweet things when you feel stressed that we have to fight. The best advice she ever told me was that when I was in crisis go out for a 10-15' walk or more so my mind would forget the craving! 😍

Well, I had my first annual mammo and ultrasound on October 28th… on one natural breast. All was normal! As exciting as that sounds, last October I had a “normal”mammo and ultrasound on two natural breasts. However, I persisted, with a symptom, until an MRI early January 2022, that revealed two sizable tumors. SO, I have decided to celebrate anniversaries on MRI days … every six months. I will start annual MRI in February this year and push a month each year until I am equally divided 6 mos. between each screening.

That said… I’m being heavily scrutinized and I was happy for a “ normal” mammo.

If you have dense breasts I recommend MRI screening in addition to mammo. It saved my life! 🌸