anyone here refuse chemo?

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rinna40
rinna40 Member Posts: 357
edited June 2014 in Complementary and Holistic Medicine and Treatment
 
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  • rinna40
    rinna40 Member Posts: 357
    edited April 2009

    Hello, I'm new to this site, and started a new topic. I recently was told I have tripple negative bc, 0 of 13 nodes, tumor 3.5 cm. I was shocked to be told that I needed chemo, as the cancer seems not to have spread anywhere. I'm conflicted about going through chemo, when I feel like the cancer is gone. But the percentages are scaring me.

    Any advice?

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  • ICanDoThis
    ICanDoThis Member Posts: 1,473
    edited April 2009

    Rinna -

    I know that this is really scary, but most oncs do recommend chemotherapy for triple negative cancer. Especially for tumors over 1 cm.

     Chemo is intended to catch whatever cancer cells may have scattered throughout the body (distant recurrence). The word most people use to describe chemo is "doable," as in, it sucks and I hated every minute of it, but I got through it, and it improved my chances of defeating this monster by 10-20%.

    The reasons are:

    1. Triple negative cancer is very susceptible to getting blasted by chemo, unlike most ER+ people, where it helps much less.

    2. The other path, hormonal treatment, doesn't work for you guys. So you don't get to bitch about the side effect of hormonals.

    There are positive things about Triple Neg - unlike most breast cancer, if you don't have a recurrence within 3-5 yrs, it is extremely unlikely to come back.

    There is a lot of very interesting new research being done in the Triple Neg field now.

    You might want to consult the Triple Negative forum further down the list.

    I'm sorry you had to come here, but remember that most of us are going to be JUST FINE.

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  • watertreatment
    watertreatment Member Posts: 9
    edited April 2009

    hi im watertreatment and have been on this site since feb 10/09. i am her2neg with no lymph node involvement (13) small tumor and lumpectomy and mammosite radiation.  .i prayed for guidence,read reputable research and talked at length to onco. i knew and trusted. i did not have chemo,but that was my personal choice. i felt right with god about it and still will be followed by oncologist for follow ups. my percentage would not go up much and i took this into consideration.   take time and give yourself some emotional space as well to make a decision.each one is a different situation and should be handled as such.  best of luck

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  • ranD
    ranD Member Posts: 373
    edited April 2009

    I have lung mets.  i took one course of Carboplatin and it put me in the hospital with low counts.  I prayed ALOT about it, read a stack of books and have decided against chemo.  Right now I am on tamoxifen and have Xeloda as a chemo back-up if I decide to go back to chemo.  Right now, I have plueral effusions that i deal with by getting them drained.

    I take some supplements, drink eissac tea and have switched my diet to lean heavy on fresh fruits and veggies and lean proteins.

    We all have to chart our own walk.  What makes sense for you might not make sense for me, so i tend to shrug off criticism and do my own thing.  i did pray for a long time and had several friends call me and they had been praying unbeknownst to me and also reched the same conclusion.

    i am not sure and no one is, if chemo would have worked or not.  i amthinking that my primary cancer was treated with chemo and altho the tumor shrunk, the cancer spread thru my lymph nodes during chemo and 3 months later it was in my lungs. SO, I feel that i gave it a really good shot before and as long as I have no regrets, I will be at peaace.  Sorry if this was a bit rambling

    prayers for you whatever the decision, randie

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  • rinna40
    rinna40 Member Posts: 357
    edited April 2009

    Thanks so much for your input. I am in a better space today. I thought about it and decided that with two small children, (girls age 4 and 7) I wasn't willing to forgo the added 30% chance that this would not come back. Thanks to Sue for the added information. I'm just getting my toes wet in this world of BC statistics. My prayers go out to all, regardless of the treatment path you choose.

     Rinna

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