bc and wine

I had to replace some of the Communion Wine at my church that I chugged down during Communion.  Otherwise, I did not drink during chemo as my liver had enough to do.

Have to admit that I had wine tonight on top of the G&T I drank to dull ankle pain.  I did a group ride and was a hilly route.  My banged up ankle was killing me.  Hoping I can do the 50 mile route of the Seattle Century next week.

Best of luck Southampton Mom and Welcome.  Good luck with everything! - Claire

susieq, Four of us (me, DH, and my parents in their 90's) went to Brisbane last September, after visiting our relatives in Sydney. My paternal g'pa was from Sydney; a journalist with the newspaper who traveled to asia on assignments. We LOVED Brisbane; stayed at a tall hotel on the water, and got around with CityCat. Loved, loved, loved how the city was accessible by water, and at night it was heavenly going up and down the river, seeing all the lights. Then all the devastation with all the flooding....that really broke my heart. How is your city faring now? I hope you didn't suffer any, because of that. The other city we loved in Australia was Adelaide, and we stayed in the Medina, the old treasury bldg w/underground tunnels. But like you, our heart lies more in NZ than in OZ. Your birth country is gorgeous!!!! Can't wait to go back to New Zealand.

Well, I know this was OT, but was excited to read that you live in Brisbane! Can you send me a PM about how Brisbane is doing now, after all that flooding? Thanks!

Kathy

Kathy - Brisbane is fine now. There are still lots of people who aren't back in their homes yet though. One guy I work with (for an insurance co) is waiting on a payout so he can get his house totally redone. I lived here in 1974 when we had the last big flood, so I knew where it was safe to live - on a hill There are still a lot of people who are fighting over their insurance. Seems that lots don't read the fine print or don't have any at all.

i think that your dr. told you to stop as there will be sugery, chemo possibly?

your liver takes one heck of a load during chemo, so no wine then.  afterwards when you are all healed up, they told me (ER+) two 5 oz. glasses a week, no problem with food.

lalisa, This something I wonder about

I love my white wine and just got my latest estradiol level back from the lab and it was <2. So it obviously isn't causing an increase in my estrogen.

Does this mean that the anti hormonals negate the effects of drinking alcohol?

This is a question I never get an answer to.

Cyndi

I drink in moderation. I had a couple glasses of wine during chemo, but honestly it did not taste good at all, so I stopped.  I think you have to watch what you do and moderation is key.  The drinking thread is fun.  We have virtual drinks there and a lot of laughs! 

Good luck with your diagnosis.  I know I was really stressed out when I was dx, especially the 2nd time.  Take care!!! 

Good news kate!!!!

Thank you Kate, yes I am doing well. However, very sad as I lost one of my close friends yesterday. Junie was also very active on the drinking thread, and a lot of girls got close to her there, also. I already had my plane tix to visit her in Sept, so of course will have to cancel that res. She was a bc survivor, but had complications from another illness. You can make some close friends from this forum, and that is priceless. There are wonderful girls on all the threads, and you will find support and caring. Join us sometime in the drinking thread if you want to, we usually have a lot of fun, although there is still sadness right now, over losing Junie.

Hugs to you,

Kathy

Hi, Just go to Forum Index → Forum: Humor and Games → Topic: how about drinking? . There are thousands of posts as this thread was started years ago, so just go to the most recent page. Kittycat who posted here, is also one of our "regulars" or "loungettes" as we call ourselves, as our lounge is the HTL, Hot Tatties Lounge. Come join us anytime!

I'm going to chime in here for just a minute to clarify a couple of points...

Most grain alcohols do not have sugar; as a matter of fact, they are very low carb.  It's the mixer that can add sugar, so be careful if you are trying to limit sugar intake. 

Dry wines like cabernet also contain no sugar.  A 5 ounce glass has 5 grams of carbs. 

Sweet white wines have about 7 carb grams for 5 ounces and no sugar.

Sparkly whites are the lowest carbs - about 1.5 grams for 5 ounces. 

From what I have learned (I am diabetic and have researched this thoroughly), the liver processes alcohol as a fat.  Limiting alcohol has more to do with not stressing the liver than the concern over sugar content of the beverage itself.

You can verify the sugar/carb/nutritional information of almost any food or beverage at www.calorieking.com.  There is no charge for searching their extensive database that even includes prepared dishes from your favorite chain restaurant.  And you can scale the information to your desired portion size. 

I'm not advocating drinking or not drinking.  I'm in the midst of chemo and I will occasionally have a diluted (spritzer or Sangria) glass of wine a couple of days before treatment.  Otherwise, it doesn't taste so good to me and I cannot drink it "straight" right now.

Wahine - sorry to hear of the loss of your friend. 

Katehudson - hope you get to enjoy that glass of wine!

Michelle

Just finished reading "The Pink Ribbon Diet" written in 2010. Helpful things to prevent BC and recurrence. They addressed the alcohol issue in their book. A few quotes...A 2008 study in southern France found that women who drank approx a glass of wine a day had a lower risk of BC compared to nondrinkers". "Another study in Seattle found that women who were moderate drinkers (regularly consumed 7 drinks/ week) and were diagnosed with BC before they were 45 had a 30% decreased mortality risk from the disease than nondrinkers". "A swedish study of close to 40,000 alcoholic women concluded that alcoholism does not increases BC risk in proportion to presumed ethanol intake. Basically they state they do not feel that a glass of alcohol/ day is a problem. "Worth noting is that even in studies that found increased risk, the threat was small----nowhere near the risk related to being overweight."

We can beat ourselves up about drinking, diet, weight, exercise but we aren't always in control and that is the problem with BC. We all know many who did everything right and have BC. I try to do my best and pray it is enough but I'll enjoy my wine too! I just passed the 3 year mark from my initial surgery with 2 stage 3 tumours and all is well. My onc told me to live as if it's not coming back. She said she has many patients with advanced BC that she has cared for for 5, 10 and even 20 years. If it comes back we'll fight it then. By the way.....my Onc is from Italy and enjoys her wine too!!!

i had a follow up with my med onc and my surgeon today... i drink a glass of wine or beer 5-7 nights a week, while making dinner. it's one of the simple joys in life and it helps me relax. i also go out 1 night a week and have a few drinks.

I asked both docs about the drinking thing

both said there is no conclusive evidence that alcohol causes or raises risk of BC. in fact the best thing is to keep stress low,,, hence, if that means a glass of wine or beer a night, so be it

the surgeons exact words were " go out and live for petes sake! you have been through enough!"

that's my justification

I totally respect the feelings and opinions of everyone on this issue.  The truth is, we simply do not know and there really is no rhyme or reason on this cancer issue.  I have said previously that prior to my diagnosis, I did not smoke, drink, do drugs etc and I still got the disease.  The human body is an incredible mystery with so many things we just don't know.  In moderation, I have to believe a few drinks a week should not make a difference either way.  Best to all.  Mary Jane