Has anyone decided not to do chemo?

Hi, Lully ~ I'm not sure why no one's responded yet to your question, so I thought I'd share a few thoughts.  Perhaps many are just too busy with holiday prep to be on bc.org much today.

What jumps out at me about the information you provided is that your Oncotype score (26) is a bit high -- probably high enough that chemo needs to be seriously considered.  There's very little in the stats you've provided to give us a clue as to why your score is 26, but obviously there's a somewhat aggressive factor in the 20+ genetic factors the Oncotype uses that is influencing your score.

Whether or not you do chemo is entirely your choice.  Personally, I had a really hard time wrapping my head around doing it, but -- in retrospect -- I'm glad I did it, although my stats were also quite different from yours.  One thing that might help you think it through is a website called cancermath.net.  I'll try to give you a link to the breast cancer page, which will give you some suggested stats w/ & w/out chemo:  http://www.lifemath.net/cancer/breastcancer/outcome/index.php

Another thing that might help are threads here called "Oncotype Rollcall," where many women have reported their Oncotype scores and decision about chemo.  (Use the search box to the left to look for them.)  

A third thing you might consider doing is getting a second opinion.  Not all oncs think alike -- especially about micromets (assuming you're referring to a lymph node), which some oncs consider a negative node, depending on the # of cells.  Whenever you have doubts about what you're being told by a doc, a second opinion can be really helpful.  

Hope this helps, and let us know if we can answer any other questions for you.   (((Hugs))), and glad you've found bc.org.     Deanna

I had 5cm plus tumour area (no lump as ILC) and a large lypmh node underarm and a total of 7 out of 14 nodes affected with cancer.  I refused chemo for all sorts of reasons, and largely due to a big voice inside constantly telling me NO do not do this to us.........I did not want surgery or radiotherapy but did not have the same voice at all, this No voice woke me up at night....I took 10 weeks to make the decision and every time came to the same conclusion, stats (not that I believe in them as they are always out of date and very generalised out) gave me 4% benefit of chemo over 5 years and 12% over 10 years........

I know my decision was right for me, had another treatment (a systemic one that is not mainstream) and do hormones and did rads, which I regret as left pretty damaged by them.....

Hope this helps

I wish, but mine was stage 3 with 7 nodes, so I did not even get an oncotype test. According to cancermath, I would have a 60% chance of being alive in 15 years without chemo versus an 82% chance with the chemo. The stats helped me put up with it. If you are borderline, it must be a really hard decision to make.

That said, in spite of 8 rounds of aggressive chemo, I am in fairly good shape almost a year after finishing up.

Lully - I struggled with doing chemotherapy, and I read so much that I thought my brain would explode from all the information. The conclusion that I came to is that it is a risk either way. I had such a bad headache up until the day I made the decision to have chemo - once I made the decision, the headache left. I have only had one treatment and it was not pleasant, but I have made the choice and I will forward with it. I am just as undecided about radiation - in fact - I may consider not doing that because my cancer is left sided and I worry about the lung and heart being in the line of the radiation beam.

These are very tough decisions and are very consequential. Good luck with your decision. I am triple negative which is a fairly aggressive cancer, so I think that helped me with my decision.