Hi Miss Thomas

You are right, Chemo is indeed a terrifying prospect. Having read many of the awesome stories here, I can see that for some it has been difficult but doable, and for others they find it too much. 

Only you can decide whether the balance of outcome probabilities makes Chemo a good choice for you. Everyone's diagnosis and treatment plan is different from the perspective of age, type of surgery and lymph node involvement and follow on treatment. 

 To be honest you will only have true picture of what Chemo  will mean for you once you have tried it, but you have to do what feels right  for you. 
 

I was diagnosed with Stage 1 Grade 3 invasive ductal  carcinoma of the  breast in Dec 2020. Age 73.  The surgery ( lumpectomy) was a breeze in day care. The  sentinel nodes and margins of the tumour were clear. I had no post op pain of any significance , used no painkillers and healed well. Apart from a bit of retching for a couple of hours post operatively, I didn't need any help at home. A kind friend made a beautiful soft  quilted cushion for me to wear under my arm to stop any  rubbing, and another to wear under the seatbelt in the car. The worst thing was driving over bumps in the road. 
 

Within 6 weeks I started Chemo. 

A week on from round 1 of Chemo and Herceptin, I have pretty much decided to come to a halt. After an admission to A&E I've thought about it carefully.  The effects have been unbearable on my body. I cannot even begin to imagine doing this three times more. And I am, in general,  not a quitter. I'll not expand on this- the side effects are well documented in information you will be given. 
 

But that is my story, my reality. Yours  may be quite different and you may have a very different journey. Whatever you do,I wish you the best of all  possible outcomes.    

Hi Miss Thomas

You are right, Chemo is indeed a terrifying prospect. Having read many of the awesome stories here, I can see that for some it has been difficult but doable, and for others they find it too much. 

Only you can decide whether the balance of outcome probabilities makes Chemo a good choice for you. Everyone's diagnosis and treatment plan is different from the perspective of age, type of surgery and lymph node involvement and follow on treatment. 

 To be honest you will only have true picture of what Chemo  will mean for you once you have tried it, but you have to do what feels right  for you. 
 

I was diagnosed with Stage 1 Grade 3 invasive ductal  carcinoma of the  breast in Dec 2020. Age 73.  The surgery ( lumpectomy) was a breeze in day care. The  sentinel nodes and margins of the tumour were clear. I had no post op pain of any significance , used no painkillers and healed well. Apart from a bit of retching for a couple of hours post operatively, I didn't need any help at home. A kind friend made a beautiful soft  quilted cushion for me to wear under my arm to stop any  rubbing, and another to wear under the seatbelt in the car. The worst thing was driving over bumps in the road. 
 

Within 6 weeks I started Chemo. 

A week on from round 1 of Chemo and Herceptin, I have pretty much decided to come to a halt. After an admission to A&E I've thought about it carefully.  The effects have been unbearable on my body. I cannot even begin to imagine doing this three times more. And I am, in general,  not a quitter. I'll not expand on this- the side effects are well documented in information you will be given. 
 

But that is my story, my reality. Yours  may be quite different and you may have a very different journey. Whatever you do,I wish you the best of all  possible outcomes.