anyone ever consider not going thru the chemo

Carla,

Girl, you have every right to feel overwhelmed and tired, and you have a license to complain about it anytime!  But the best thing you can do for yourself is to take this one treatment at a time.  During the times I felt most overwhelmed, I realized that I wasn't taking it one day at a time, and that's what you have to do.  The husband and kids are probably fighting because maybe they feel the stress of what is going on too, and that's their way of coping.  Make sure you tell them what you need, and that you expect them to make YOU their first priority, not fighting each other.

The treatments are important in your battle to win against this cancer.  You can do it!

Hugs and Best Wishes,

Bobbie

Carla, a lot of us considered not going through chemo.  Many of us with ER+ HER2- tumors (and no positive nodes) seriously thought about it; some of us were even given a "choice" of chemo or no chemo.  Most oncos can provide statistics of the likelihood of recurrence of a tumor, comparing chemo vs. no chemo.

That said, I think it's standard procedure to recommend chemo for someone who had a positive node--even just one.  That means the cancer has spread beyond the breast, and there really is no telling how far it's gone.  Chemo is a good way to kill off any stray cells that did escape from the breast and go elsewhere.

But I think you knew all that, right?  You didn't say in this post whether your tumor was ER+ and/or over-expressed HER2.  You also didn't give the size or grade of your tumor, or whether it had been Oncotype tested (if ER+).  Those are important considerations in the debate.  Maybe you mentioned those in a different post.

This whole BC thing is very scary.  We would all agree with you there.  But, most of us would tell you that chemo is not nearly as scary as the alternative of facing a much greater likelihood that your cancer will return.  Now is the time to attack it--not later, once it has reappeared in your liver or bones.

Please don't bail out on this.  You can do it.  I'm halfway through the exact same chemo regimen you will be getting.  My 3rd tx is on May 14, and I'm actually looking forward to it, in a weird way.  It means I'll be nearly done, and I can get on with my life.

Hugs,

otter 

Carla,

I also had 4 txs of Taxotere & Cytoxan. and I am the biggest chicken, so if I can do it, so can you.  I think that  Bobbie is right...you need to try to only think about this one step at a time.  That is the only way I got through it, really.

As I went through all the different phases of my treatment, I realized that it really wasn't all that bad, really.  Now I won't lie, chemo isn't fun, but it is DOABLE. 

There are threads to help you cope with each different type of chemo, and if they haven't started one yet for May, you can start one.  It really helped me, knowing that others were going through similar tx and we could give each other advice and support when needed.

Try to remember that if you try to keep up with your se's, you will be ahead of the game.  Here is what I did... whenever my onc nurse told me to do something to avoid a particular se, I did it... For example, if you get Neulasta shot the day after your tx, I did, and the onc nurse told me to take Claritin for 3 or 4 days after getting the Neulasta shot.  It helped to prevent any bone pains you may get from the Neulasta shot...  I never had any trouble with that, because I took the Claritin as instructed.  They suggest that you take REGULAR Claritin, not Claritin D.

I'll be thinking about you... Hang in there!

Good Luck!!

Hugs,

Harley

P.S.  If you like, you can pm me, and I would be glad to chat with you more.  I know it's scary, but YOU CAN DO IT!!

Hi, Carla

I have to come in here and tell you, that I dont think anyone was more scare than me, not to do chemo, I cry and cry and even thought about running away from it all, but you know what, I did'nt, and the reason for that is very clear, just like everyone else has explain here, the time to get rid of those lingering cancer cells is now, not later, please don't do this to yourself, you are worth, fighting now, and not to have any regrets later. In my mind being an Insurance Broker, I can tell you that :"Chemo is our insurance policy against Breast Cancer"

Hi Carla,

I feel the same way. I was just told I would have to have chemo, and I have to have it before surgery do to the size of my tumor.  I'm terrified, but if it's the only way to ensure life, I will have to do it.  I agree with the ladies here, take it one day at a time.  This is not something you will have to do for the rest of your life. Hang in there, and best of luck to you on a great recovery!