Do you consider hormonal therapy.....chemo?

There are many issues that can deny you donating blood. Weight, BP, blood count, some meds, some lifestyles (if the person is honest), having resided in some areas of the world, are a few. Being a BC survivor a year after active TX (used to be 2 yrs) is not an automatic denial unless there are other 'red flags' - recurrence/mets or other issuesthat would deny anyway.

We each have to make our own decisions as to rather search for info. I will go with the guide lines that the Red Cross and United Blood Service have in force. I did donate yesterday and was given the date I can do my next donation. Unfortunately there are many myths/Old Geezers Tales still running around.

Wow -- a fascinating tangent from the original topic!

Thanks so much, SpecialK! I was a regular blood donor before my BC dx, and had volunteered for the initial bone marrow screening too. After my dx, I checked around and talked to some people, and got the impression that "5 years out from active treatment" was the usual deferral time. I always figured I would get back in line at the blood drives after that time had elapsed. I never did find out if Arimidex counted as "active treatment," but I thought I would wait a year or so after I'd been off Arimidex even if it didn't count (and tell them all my medical history of course).

Things change... I'm still on Arimidex (nearing 7 years), so I'm still staying away from the blood drives. But, even though I should have known, I never even thought about the issue of circulating tumor cells or tumor cells hiding out in the bone marrow. Even if that risk is small, it's not zero. The result could be devastating in a recipient on chemo or otherwise immunosuppressed.

I'm not an organ donor, so I don't need to worry about that. Too many of my major organs are messed up one way or another, and I'm reaching the point where anything I have is nearing its expiration date anyway. :-)

I hereby take myself off the donor lists. I haven't decided if I want to donate parts for scientific research after I die. I saw a film about this forensic research place in Kentucky (I think) where they put dead bodies in the woods to watch what happens to them. It sorta creeped me out.

Oh, and having been the reluctant recipient of 4 rounds of Taxotere & Cytoxan, I *do not* consider Arimidex or the other estrogen-blocking drugs to be "chemo". Just IMHO, but I suspect there's plenty of agreement on that.

otter

Oh, have people been reading Patricia Cornwall (reference to Body Farm)??? So, the original topic, no I do not consider hormone therapy chemo, my insurance company and my MO do not consider my Herceptin infusions chemo, nor does this board, it is targeted therapy, but I still have to go to the cancer center every 3 weeks and get it. I think the tricky part is how to explain to others. I hear my husband say to his cousin on the phone yesterday, oh she is all done and is doing great. WHAT, I have infusions for another 5 months every three weeks, I'm getting fills every 2 weeks, will need surgery to remove my port, surgery to swap out my TEs with squishies, will go on hormone therapy in a month. My ears ring constantly, I still have floaters in the eyes, but less, neuropathy in my feet and fingers, and Herceptin 'arthritis', as I like to call it. No, I'm not done and doing great.

Mind you - if you go with ACS's definition, it is. Here is the American Cancer Societies definition, "The word chemotherapy means the use of any drug (such as aspirin or penicillin) to treat any disease, but to most people chemotherapy refers to drugs used for cancer treatment. It's often shortened to "chemo." Two other medical terms used to describe cancer chemotherapy are antineoplastic (meaning anti-cancer) therapy and cytotoxic (cell-killing) therapy." http://www.cancer.org/treatment/treatmentsandsideeffects/treatmenttypes/chemotherapy/chemotherapyprinciplesanin-depthdiscussionofthetechniquesanditsroleintreatment/chemotherapy-principles-what-is-chemo

Great discussion. I have been a donor for years and it was hard to stop as my type (A-) is always in demand. But, I was told that taking Tamoxifen will make me permanently ineligible. Not sure why, but.....