My 3-year Smoke Free-er-versary!!

1Athena1

YIPPPPEEEEEE!!!!! I give myself full boasting rights.

April 27th, 2009 was the last day I was an active smoker. I did it through thick and thin.

If I can do it, anyone can. 

I wanted to start a thread where those of us who have successfully quit can share experiences and milestones. I didn't want to hijack the "stop smoking support" thread as I don't follow it routinely and thought it would be disrespectful to suddenly intrude. Therefore, I start a companion thread.

Ok folks: If you got BC and you smoke cigarrettes NOW IS THE TIME TO STOP!!! Smoking CAN worsen your prognosis, and it immediately raises your risk level in innumerable ways. For example:

--BC increases the risk of ovarian cancer - so does smoking - so now you are facing a double threat.

--BC can spread to the lungs....it might just meet up with lung cancer cells created by smoking, what?

--Radiation to the chest wall carries the small risk of affecting the lung and heart -- assuming that tobacco doesn't catch you in its lair first via cardiovascular disease or lung cancer, or COPD.

--There are a few studies suggesting that some BC cells may have nicotine receptors.

--Carcinoma of the breast and tobacco are two hitmen, out to get you. If you are diagnosed with one, please, please, at least get rid of the other.

I can't believe I am revealing this on an OP, but I do hope it will help and inspire others who think they can't quit: I have Bipolar I Disorder - not the type that most people get (depressions with tiny highs that are being overdiagnosed as Bipolar), but the classic, textbook type with the severe symptoms that would have had me diagnosed in the 70s. It is inherited, neurobiological, lifelong, and not curable. Only treatable, and with inter-episodic remission.

I was diagnosed with breast cancer in late March of 2009. I immediately made the decision, out of pure fear, to stop smoking - something I usually feared more. On April 27th at 6 am I started the count. I used nicotine patches to begin with. However, as the days went by and my cravings did not cease, I started using more and more patches, until it became evident that I was making things worse. So I did what most veterans suggest, given the abysmal quit record of patches, chantix, etc: I went "cold turkey." By mid-May, I was starting to get manic from the stress of nicotine withdrawal, etc... On May 24th, 911 was called and I was hospitalized in a psych ward for mania brought on by not smoking. I had quit cold turkey, because the most addictive part of smoking is nicotine - not the carcinogens. Also, my PS had said I could not smoke before or after my reconstruction and I didn't want to ruin my body simply because of nicotine. It's the nicotine that can slow or prevent proper healing after surgery.

At the psych. ward, even the doctors were worried for me. The head of the psychiatry department offered to give me nicotine patches to ease the mania. I remeber saying "No, I've come this far, I'll keep going."

I was in the P-Hosp for about a week and emerged, still having a long way to go to come down from my immense and destructive high. But I did come down from it, and without cigarettes.

This is one of the worst things that can happen to you - literally going crazy over something. I was hospitalized because I was believed to be a danger to myself. And I came out of it. I stayed quit, the days passed, nicotine and its metabolites slowly eased out of my system, and every week the cravings diminished. No matter how awful the withdrawal felt, I knew it was less bad than the week before.

Some people with cancer endure chemotherapy. Others fear the surgery and go through much pain and hardship. Others are maimed and weakened by radiation or hormone therapy. We as cancer patients all have our crosses to bear. We are faced with monumental decisions, a Herculean fight to endure the unendurable, and all of our vulnerabilities come to the fore, as we get closer and closer to our limit....

But so do our strengths. I am proud that I walked right through that forest of smoking-withdrawal induced mania and eventually came to a clearing. I attribute my BC survival up until this day to the surgery and my quit. Those were, IMO, my two lifesavers. What kept me going is what keeps all the sisters on this board going who endure horrendous SEs from treatment. The conviction that you are doing the right thing, and the fear that NOT doing it is worse. I told myself "this is MY cancer treatment - we know cancer treatment is hard."

I sailed through BMX and reconstruction and refused chemo and rads.

Down the road, after I had conquered the worst of my smoking addiction demon, I was to endure a battle with hormonal therapy that very nearly cost me my life. But it was this event, started on April 27th, 2009, that gave me the strength to pull through that as well.

***********

For the next few days, I will be updating this thread with posts of information about resources that helped me through my quit in the hope that they inspire, help and support you.

I'd also love to hear from others who have milestones to share. Any other smoke free-er-versaries to share?

How many of you are familiar with smoke quit counters - they are all over the web and you can calculate how many days it's been since you stopped, how many cigarettes you have NOT smoked (that one always makes me shudder), how much money you have saved and even (for those of you who like to know), by how much you have extended your life.

I am using a quit meter from: http://www.quitsmokingcounter.com/your-quit-smoking-counter/

In 2009, I smoked about 1 pack per day. Since the store I went to always had Marlboro Lights 100s on sale, I was able to get by paying less than some. I paid about $6.50/pack.  Here is what it says after I enter my data:

EDITED MAY 13:

I stopped smoking on Mon, 27 Apr 2009 10:01:00 UTC.
It has been 158 weeks, 5 days, 19 hours, 14 minutes and 24 seconds since I quit.
I have saved $ 7226.71 by choosing not to smoke 22236 cigarettes.
More importantly, I saved  24 weeks, 1 days 20 hours 36 minutes of my life!

1Athena1

I have posted some of this information before on BCO.

Here are some interesting milestones - things to celebrate after you stop smoking:

• In your first 20 minutes after quitting: your blood pressure and heart rate recover from the cigarette-induced spike.
• After 12 hours of smoke-free living: the carbon monoxide levels in your blood return to normal.
• After two weeks to three months of smoke-free living: your circulation and lung function begin to improve.
• After one to nine months of smoke-free living: clear and deeper breathing gradually returns as coughing and shortness of breath diminishes; you regain the ability to cough productively instead of hacking, which cleans your lungs and reduce your risk of infection.
• One year after quitting smoking, a person's risk of coronary heart disease is reduced by 50 percent.
• Five to 15 years after quitting smoking, a person's risk of stroke is similar to that of a nonsmoker.
• After 10 years of smoke-free living, your lung cancer death rate is about half that of a person who has continued to smoke. The risk of other cancers, such as throat, mouth, esophagus, bladder, cervix and pancreas decreases, too.

Source: American Heart Association: http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/QuitSmoking/QuittingSmoking/Smoke-free-Living-Benefits-Milestones_UCM_322711_Article.jsp

DiDel

Congratulations!!!!!!!

I know its tough...I quit smoking a week before diagnosis cold turkey and havent even thought of starting up again. it is a hard time to quit if you are like me and smoke when you are stressed but the thought of lung cancer or lung mets became so real and so scary I am just too scared to ever pick one up again.

Hang in there ladies.. the longer you go without a cig ...the easier it gets....

MinusTwo

Athena:  Hope you'll join us on the Stop Smoking Support thread.  There are ladies who are just quitting and ladies who are still adding supporting advise & ideas and paying forward after being smoke free for several years.  We do celebrate everyone's anniversary.

.

(Edited by Mods to make the thread link clickable)

Moderators

Congratulations Athena, and thanks for sharing your experiences with everyone!

The Mods

elimar86861

Congrats, Athena.  I think you have made a real difference in your life.  I hope others will HEED YOUR WORDS and make the same choice to do so.  Just the reduction in PHLEGM is worth it, not to mention all your bulleted points above.  As nasty as B/C is, L/C is even nastier and the majority of cases are not diagnosed until they are Stage IV, with even less of a fighting chance than we get with B/C.  

Congrats to all quitters.  Good Luck to all wannabe quitters.  Want it.  Do it.  Smell better.

1Athena1

Very true, DiDel - it does get easier. Congratulations to you, too.

It's so hard.... and during the times of craving I would literally forget why I quit. Incredible but true. I had to have my cheat sheet of reasons. I think the brain starts playing tricks on you to make you want smoking and nothing else.

I still have my cheat sheet. Here is what I wrote:

My reasons to stop smoking:

--I will nev4er have to quit again!!!! I DO NOT WANT TO GO THROUGH THIS AGAIN.

--Protect my heart

--Get reconstructive surgery

--Not be embarrassed in public or "look" like an addict.

--Not waste time - especially at work or in the mornings.

Then at the bottom, I scribbed: "Time will pass. If I can deal with psychic pain, I can deal with cravings and bargaining. If I feel bad, it is NOT because of stopping smoking!

1Athena1

Elimar - oh, the smell - No longer does one have to be worried about how close people can get if you've just had a cigarette. My best friend at college said she liked Marlboro kisses - and I don't disagree. :-) But I don't want the man stuck with my choice, and smelling it on my clothes, too.

1Athena1

MinusTwo: Thanks for the invitation - same to folks over there who would like to post their milestones here!

CLC

Congratulations!  I quit in Fall of 2004.  Damned hard.  But the rewards are...not just worth it...they are immeasurable...:)

My grandmother struggled with emphysema while dying of uterine cancer.  Both of my parents died of lung cancer.  They were 66 and 67 when they died.  I was diagnosed with COPD, but managed to reverse all symptoms.

Every day that is smoke free is a tribute to living.  I wish all of you that are quitting all of the strength that you need to succeed...

Claire

SeasideMemories

A HUGE congrats to my favorite Lioness!



I also made sure to write down, not only my reasons but also what I felt like day by day in the beginning.... I quit cold turkey and wanted to make sure that, after the memories of quitting faded and I was tempted to smoke, I had something to remind me of the struggle to break free.... Don't want to do that again!



Loved to see your 'stats'.... Here was my latest from quitnet.com....



Your  Quit Date is: Monday, January 18, 2010 at 11:01:00 AM

Time Smoke-Free: 820 days, 18 hours, 2 minutes and 4 seconds

Cigarettes NOT smoked: 16415

Lifetime Saved: 4 months, 5 days, 9 hours

Money Saved: $7,881.60





I don't think any of us over on the Stop Smoking Support thread would ever think of you as intruding!! We'll take all the help we can get!!! lol... But, I can see where this thread could fit very nicely as a companion.... Sort of like a 'graduate school' for people who have quit..... Feel free to join in over on our thread and we'll do the same over here!!!



PS... Would love to see all the 'stats' from those who have quit, if for no other reason than to see how each of our individual successes have added up to a huge amount of cash saved but mor importantly... a huge amount of our lives saved!!

1Athena1

QUITTING RESOURCE: 

Thank you all. I apologize for not coming back sooner to post more (hopefully) useful information.

One very valuable web site that helped in my quit was: http://www.whyquit.com. It is kind of a one man show, and he only believes in quitting Cold Turkey (which I increasingly agree with, as I believe smoking withdrawal needs to be treated like all substance abuse withdrawal - however, each person has unique needs).

But others, including the American Lung Association http://www.lung.org also say you should

a) Plan your quit in advance, setting a date that you mark on your calendar

b) Begin a support program before you quit - very important. People considering quitting should not fear that they have to stop first. No. Preparation is the key.

1Athena1

So here are some "Why Quit" pages that really helped - and it helped me to read then BEFORE I stopped smoking. I don't agree with everything said on that web site - I do think preparation is is vital. Having said that, I will still suggest this interesting piece - It describes what happens to you when you stop, and how to deal with it:

http://whyquit.com/whyquit/A_Symptoms.html

This page of "angels" helped too. Read it after you have committed to setting a date:

http://whyquit.com/whyquit/

1Athena1

QUITTING RESOURCE:

The American Lung Association has a SUPERB online program called "Freedom from Smoking." It was free when I took it three years ago. Unfortunately it no longer is -I think you pay between $15 and $40 for the course, which includes discussion forums and tutorials. Support is available 24/7 so people from around the world can take it.

You can start taking this course BEFORE your quit. There are modules to help you prepare. Here goes:

http://www.ffsonline.org/

1Athena1

A note about treatments such as nicotine gum, chantix, wellbutrin:

By themselves, they have an abysmal success rate. They should only be used as a tiny part of a broader plan, IMO - at most, 10 percent of it. Do not expect to take any of these treatments and find that quitting is easy - it is not, and it's ok to acknowledge that only so that you can be extra proud every time you refrain from smoking - it is just a teeny, teeny bit less difficult. So buyer beware.

Speaking only from experience - no expertise to back this: IMO, it's ok to use all the help you can get so long as you are realistic about not depending on any one source. I've had varied results with nicotine patches - I think it works best for people who smoke in their houses and are surrounded by smoking and its by-products 24/7. It worked in a quit I had in a previous life (I resumed smoking because my room mate at college smoked). It did notwork for me three years ago because I was only smoking outside of the home. So when I began to use patches, I went from having nicotine "only" for the 20 cigarettes per day to having it 24/7. I became more dependent on nicotine - not less. IMO, you should strongly take your smoking habits into consideration before deciding whether a 24/7 treatment adjunct like a patch makes sense for you.

1Athena1

You know what the best part about stopping was?

I will never have to stop again -YEY!!! Never again will I have to go through that agony.

Some tips that helped me:

--Just put that idea in writing large letters on a wall in every room of your house if necessary.

--When you are suffering from withdrawal and thinking "this is horrible" think "I NEVER want to do this again!!!! I'll quit now."

--You will sometimes forget why you stopped - believe me. Incredible as it sounds, you need reminding. An addicted brain plays tricks on one -it makes the craving overtake reason. Not even cancer can stop that. Keep repeating "never again will I have to quit" - repeat the reasons.

--Memorize you cheat sheet. Write it down and make copies. Keep it in your purse or wallet.

I hope this helps. More later. :-)

1Athena1

SeasideMemories - congrtulations on you "stats." I think what horrified me most was the number of cigarettes not smoked - yikes! The money too.

Galsal

Congratulations!!!

karen333

Dear Athena, what a compelling story, I too was a smoker for 30+ years.  I never believed I could quit, used to joke that I would need my jaw wired shut and would even then find a way to keep on smoking.  I chanced upon the Quit Smoking thread on bc.org, met with huge support and wonderful women and as of the 16th of this month, I have been a non-smoker for 16 months.  You are a strong woman to quit cold turkey, on your own, despite seemingly insurmountable odds - Congratulations!!!  Please join us as we celebrate new non-smokers.  Karen

candie1971

Hi, Athena..you and I quit at the same time. I was 3 years on April 26th. I did it cold turkey and have been doing well with it. I have gained alot of weight tho and now that is my next job to lose the weight. Good job with this thread also, Athena.

hugs

puce

Congrats!

1Athena1

Oh, candie....don't talk to me about weight -lol!....I blame it on the Tamoxifen and Lupron, though and my comorbidity flare-up....and the fact that I had reconstruction surgeries which meant I could not exericse....yada, yada, yada....I still consider myself a quitter in progress. Maybe we'll need another tread about smoking and weight. :-) I am still about 20 lbs over what I should be. Cancer and smoking quits have loooooong tails.

o2bhealthy

Congrat's Athena!!!! We quit around the same time, my three year is May 6th and I too quit cold turkey. 

Thank you for all the great links and information. I know there I times I need reminded how hard it was to quit so that I don't start smoking again...I am a one and done person and know if I have 'just one' cigarette I will be back to a full pack a day habit in no time (I know this because I have done it 3 times already in my 20+ years of smoking) 

Stay strong!

Moderators

And Congratulations o2bhealthy !!!

1Athena1

What the mods said!

1Athena1

Ok, now for the BC-smoking science....or fhe little we know.

We all talk here about receptor status we have, but so little is known. They can tell you about estrogen, pogestin, HER2 overexpression and a very few others.

What if nicotine also helped to feed BC? Do we know whether it does for sure? Not unequivocally - at least not in humans. But in mice, there are some disturbing suggestions.

And when science isn't the answer, you look at epidemiology. You take a multitude of studies or data, analyze them all, and find trends and associations. These meta analyses should also be cause  for panic if you smoke and have BC. Yes, I do mean to panic. You can't do anyhing about the fact that you have BC already, but you can hunt down the assassins it may harbor. And, but quitting, you can help to rpevent recurrence.

If you are going to have surgery, chemo, rads, hormonals, etc....if you are going to work that hard, sacrifice that much, please don't see all of your hard work undue by continuing to smoke.

The question of BC and smoking has come and gone, but there is a slowly growing consensus that it is NOT TRUE that there is no link between smoking and BC.

Which, to be intellectually honest, does NOT means that everyone who smokes gets BC, made BC worse or will get a recurrence. So, as will all of the known factoids about cancer, it is important to carefully qualify this one.

Coming up....some reposts of old posts of mine...

1Athena1

Repost 1:

Here are some links and information about the relationship between smoking and breast cancer. What they find is that certain substances may (in theory still) lead to mammary tumours. In the following study, which I follow with a link to Science Daily, there is evidence of nicotine binding to receptors:

The study itself (published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute):

http://jnci.oxfordjournals.org/content/102/17/1322

Explanation of the study for us laypeople, from Science Daily:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/08/100823162320.htm

An excerpt:

The researchers found that human breast cancer cells consistently overexpressed the alpha 9 subunit of the nAChR (α9-nAchR), and that expression was higher in advanced-stage breast cancer compared with early-stage cancer. They also found that reducing the levels of α9-nAchRs inhibited tumor growth in laboratory experiments, whereas increasing the levels of α9-nAchRs or treating more normal breast cells with nicotine promoted the development of cancer characteristics.

The authors write: "These results imply that receptor-mediated carcinogenic signals play a decisive role in biological functions related to human breast cancer development."

The authors say their study was limited by its small sample size, and the fact that it included only Asian patients. Breast cancer in Taiwan is characterized by its low incidence rate and early stage of tumor onset.

1Athena1

Repost 2:

....but much of the relationship between smoking and breast cancer remains theoretical. Here is an epidemiological study. My bold:

Abstract

Cigarette smoking is an established cause of a variety of cancer types, but its role in breast cancer etiology is not clear. In this report, the potential role of cigarette smoke carcinogens as causes of human breast cancer is evaluated. Of over 60 known carcinogens in tobacco smoke, several are known to induce mammary tumors in laboratory animals: benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P), dibenzo[a,l]pyrene (DB[a,l]P), 2-toluidine, 4-aminobiphenyl, 2-amino-3-methylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoline (IQ), 2-amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazo[4,5-b]pyridine (PhIP), 1,3-butadiene, isoprene, nitromethane, ethylene oxide, and benzene. Studies in humans demonstrate that tobacco constituents can reach breast tissue. The uptake and metabolic activation of mammary carcinogens such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and 4-aminobiphenyl are frequently higher in smokers than in nonsmokers. Although it is likely that specific mammary carcinogens in tobacco smoke can reach breast tissue, evidence is lacking at the present time. Some PAHs present in cigarette smoke can be metabolized to sterically hindered diol epoxides, which are potent mammary carcinogens. Thus, compounds such as benzo[c]phenanthrene (B[c]P), not classically considered to be a strong carcinogen in rodents, could nevertheless be metabolized in humans to diol epoxides carcinogenic to the breast. Collectively, the link between smoking and breast cancer is plausible but has been difficult to establish, probably because of the low carcinogen dose. Environ. Mol. Mutagen. 39:119-126, 2002. © 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Link: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/em.10071/abstract

1Athena1

Repost 3: 

This 2008 study concentrates on the same receptor as the Asian study and finds that it plays a role in promoting the growth and spread of BC. Interestingly, nicotine is singled out, even though nicotine itself was never considered a carcinogen:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/10/081015073938.htm

Excerpt from Science Daily:

ScienceDaily (Oct. 19, 2008) - A study published in Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, suggests a possible role for nicotine in breast tumor development and metastases.

The study, conducted by researchers at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, is among the first to explore the effects of nicotine on mammary cells.

"Although numerous studies indicate the role of nicotine exposure in tumor promotion, little is known about the effect of nicotine on breast tumor development, especially on the metastatic process of breast cancer," said lead author Chang Yan Chen, Ph.D., M.D., at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.

Through a series of in vitro tests Chen and her team of researchers determined that breast epithelial-like MCF10A cells and cancerous MCF7 cells both express several subunits of nAChR (nicotine receptor), that when bound, initiate a signaling process, potentially increasing cell growth and migration.

"The best known role of nAChR is in the nerve system," Chen said. "Although cells from various tissue origins express different subunits of nAChR, we know very little about the functions of nAChR in non-neuronal cells and tissues, in particular in mammary cells."

------------------------------------------------------

Sorry, I don't like using Science Daily as my primary source, but I can't find the original link to the study.

1Athena1

Repost 4:

Finally, a large meta analysis of the literature conducted by an international panel under the auspices of a Canadian anti-tobacco group (important to disclose) found evidence for pre-menopausal but not postmenopausal women:

From The New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/24/health/24smoke.html

April 24, 2009

Panel Sees Role for Smoking in Breast Cancer

By RONI CARYN RABIN

Smoking causes lung cancer and is implicated in a dozen other cancers, but scientists have generally dismissed its importance in breast cancer, saying it plays little role, if any.

Now, a Canadian panel of experts is challenging the widely held view.

In a report issued on Thursday, the panel asserted that evidence from new studies strongly suggests that smoking increases the risk of breast cancer, and warned that girls and young women faced special risks from exposure to smoke. For them, even exposure to secondhand smoke during this critical period of development may increase the risk of breast cancer later in life, the report said.

The report found strong evidence that secondhand smoke contributed to premenopausal breast cancer, but did not find enough support to say it increased the risk of postmenopausal breast cancer.

The perspective is a sharp dissent from the consensus among most scientists that there is not enough consistent evidence to determine whether smoking plays a causal role in breast cancer. The International Agency for Research on Cancer said in a 2004 report that it found little or no link between active smoking and breast cancer, and the surgeon general's office said in 2006 that there was insufficient evidence to say secondhand smoke caused breast cancer.

1Athena1

Here is some more recent information.

On our very own BCO, there is news of a large statistical study suggesting* a slight increase in breast cancer. In the past, some studies have shown lower risk, partly because smoking may decrease levels of estrogen. One study found a slightly lower risk in post-mnopausal women because of this, but this is a better designed study and it suggests just the opposite. More and more, the data point to greater risk - not lesser.:

http://www.breastcancer.org/risk/new_research/20110304.jsp

Excerpt from BCO's explanation (my bold):

A very large research study published in the British Medical Journal found that cigarette smoking -- either past or present -- increases breast cancer risk in postmenopausal women. Exposure to second-hand smoke also increases breast cancer risk.

This study looked at information from the Women's Health Initiative Observational Study (WHI). The WHI aims to find links between lifestyle factors and health problems such as cancer. The researchers looked at the health histories of 79,990 women in the WHI between 1993 and 1998. The researchers were particularly interested in whether the women had ever smoked and for how long, when they started smoking, and their exposure to second-hand smoke. By 2009, after more than 10 years of follow-up, 3,520 women were diagnosed with breast cancer.

• 41,022 women never smoked; 1,692 of them (4.1%) were diagnosed with breast cancer
• 38,968 women smoked or had a history of smoking; 1,828 of them (4.7%) were diagnosed with breast cancer

Overall, women who smoked were 16% more likely to be diagnosed with breast cancer, compared to women who never smoked.

Women who smoked the longest had the greatest increase in breast cancer risk:

• women who smoked for 50 years or more were 35% more likely to be diagnosed compared to non-smokers
• women who started smoking before their first pregnancy were 21% more likely to be diagnosed compared to non-smokers
• women who started smoking before the age of 15 were 12% more likely to be diagnosed compared to non-smokers

More than 88% of the women who never smoked said they had been exposed to second-hand smoke. Women who had the longest lifetime exposure to second-hand smoke -- 10 or more years in childhood, 20 or more years as an adult, or 10 or more years at work -- were 32% more likely to be diagnosed with breast cancer compared to women who had less or no exposure to second-hand smoke.

----------------

*Very few statistical studies are flawless - so this is an association, not a cause-effect. Only true biological science --as in molecular biology-- can establish a biological process. But it adds to the growing body of evidence.