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Living through Chemotherapy for Breast Cancer
Breast cancer today is so much more survivable than it ever was. Perhaps one day this horrible, debilitating malady will finally be put to rest and on a list of other past diseases that are gone because of medical science. However, it the meantime, you must persevere and continue the march forward into all of the tomorrows. Understand that this is no easy feat to accomplish, but all women everywhere must stand tall together and continue to bring attention to this taker of lives.
Younger women having gone through this ordeal do understand what is at stake for them. Many of these young women had chemotherapy and now face the problem of an early menopause. Women who already have a family will fare much better by accepting this than young women who have remained single. Time, weekly counseling, and joining with other survivors will help to change these inadequacies you are now feeling.
Exposure to chemotherapy has caused many changes such as the loss of hair, the perception of yourself, and how you believe those around you see you now. Sure things have changed for you, but inside you are still the same person and you need to feel proud of surviving such an ordeal. Okay, yes, you lost most if not all of your hair, but it will grow back. You need to focus on the fact that you survived. You survived for yourself and for all your family and friends who surround you.
Have you considered wearing a wig if it makes you feel more comfortable. What about those loose shirts and sweatshirts you have started wearing, are you that self-conscious about your appearance? You are looking at this entire issue as if you did something wrong. The reality is the exact opposite, as you will soon come to realize. Be proud of all you have accomplished and the ordeal you have just survived. There are many other women who were not as fortunate as you have been.
Hormonal therapies are in reserve for women who are not within the menopause years. Chemotherapy can affect your menstrual cycle and cause your egg production to come to a sudden halt. Menstrual cycle changes are usually temporary, but this is an issue for the two of you to speak with the medical physician. Keeping in mind that fertility difficulties sometimes occur even with the best approach and attention.
Women who have their ovaries removed surgically during the treatment of breast cancer obviously will never have children biologically, but the issue of adoption is always on the back burner. There are a few things you and your husband can consider as a safety incase the medical physician decides you must have chemotherapy.
All of the options listed are viable for you and your husband to talk about and consider, but at a later date. Right now your focus must be on receiving whatever it takes to keep you alive and well. Thinking about starting a family down the road will serve as a positive reinforcement. This is an issue you will want to keep open and discuss often.
Clinical, biological, and pathological features of breast cancer in younger women like you vary from older women. If you receive a diagnosis of breast cancer before reaching age forty this is an indication of a more palpable mass rather than the mammographic indications. In younger women there is another difficulty because the breast tissue is generally dense therefore by the time a small lump is noticeable the cancer has spread and become more advanced. However, what you do have in your favor is the fact that younger women generally respond better.