Hello, my lovely mother-in-law was diagnosed with stage 4 triple negative breast cancer in July. It’s in both breasts, has spread to her neck and she’s been told the tumours are inoperable because they’re so invasive. They’ve given her a prognosis of 6-12 months without chemo.
She’s devastated as are we and she says she’s made the decision not to have chemo. My husband and brother in law are going with her for her oncology app tomorrow to discuss treatment options and I’m desperately worried she’s going to refuse treatment. She’s already in a lot of pain which I fear is going to get much worse. On the one hand I respect her right and decision not to have treatment but on the other, I worry she’s basing her decision on fear (completely understandable).
Obviously we (her immediate family) want her to do chemo because we want her with us for as long as possible. We’ve told her this. But I honestly don’t know what to do? Do we try and convince her to have something she’s terrified of and we all know will be tough for her. I’m scared what will happen if she doesn’t have chemo and I’m equally worried about persuading her to have chemo and her resenting is for it. I feel like this is a no win situation and despite talking to her a lot about it, and I out from friends who are oncologists, she’s made up her mind. Does anyone else have a similar experience or can offer advice? Thanks for reading.
