What are my chances for survival? This depends on many aspects of your cancer. You may not ever get a clear answer because so many factors contribute to success rates. Sometimes people beat against the odds. Some people will not beat cancer despite a good prognosis. If you have hormonal breast cancer I can tell you that the odds are in your favor. A tremendous amount of research has been done on breast cancer. Doctors have some concrete methodology on how breast cancer grows and behaves. The breast cancer drugs have heavy side effects but seem to be effective at killing and slowing down the growth of cancer cells.

At the beginning of this journey I made friends who also had breast cancer. Some of those friends are still alive and some are not. I have a friend who beat breast cancer but was later diagnosed with lymphoma. I have friends who are currently cancer free. We never know what this life has in store for us. We must enjoy every single day of the time we have here on earth. We never know when or for what cause it will be taken away. Never take anything for granted.

Does it matter where you get your treatment? Ultimately, medicine is medicine, treatment is treatment…but, I would say your overall experience greatly depends on were you get treatment. My local hospital has a small chemotherapy unit. I am told that chemo takes all day because you spend several hours waiting for a bed/chair to receive chemotherapy at this small non cancer centered hospital. I have heard of patients getting their chemotherapy in the hallways because the unit is overwhelmed. They suffer from a shortage of room, nurses, doctors and time. When you already feel like crap and are scared to death, this is not the experience you want.

However, the cancer drugs are the same. I have spoken with others from around the world and we all received the same cancer cocktails. The ability to get in touch with a doctor, nurse or aide may matter depending upon your treatment center. And most importantly, how they handle the side effects of cancer treatment really sets one hospital apart from another.

The chemotherapy suite was important. You will spend a lot of time in the suite. You are going to want a bed or a comfortable chair. You may want snacks, to watch television, read, sleep or chit chat with a friend. Moffitt also had volunteers that came and sat with the people who were getting chemotherapy alone. And, the volunteers were people who previously had a cancer diagnosis and beat it. It doesn’t get much better than that. At Moffitt Cancer center I was given medication for anxiety, vomitting, and anything else that might possibly happen before I had chemotherapy. I can say that they did there very best to keep me comfortable during the process.

Why do I have to take so many pills? A lot of the medication is to counteract the side effects of chemotherapy drugs. Take the medicine without hesitation. You do not want to see what chemotherapy can do to your body. If you have a concern about the medication, ask your nurse or nurse practitioner. Often they have more time to devote to questions that your oncologist.

Did I do something that caused me to get cancer? The cancer gene is real, environmental factors can cause cancer, and what we eat and drink matters. One of my doctors said to me that, ‘we like to think we live in a society that allows us to determine what causes cancer. But, honestly, we don’t know. Some cancers can be traced to bad habits (cigarettes) or previous working conditions (exposure to asbestos), or genetic predispositions. However, sometimes people get cancer and we do not know why.’ Cancer is a tough diagnosis to handle. But spending time worrying about how you got it won’t help you. You can put yourself in the best possible emotional place. From this point forward do everything you can to help cure the cancer. Eat healthy, rest, drink water and give your body everything it needs to fight this terrible disease. If you suspect that you have a genetic predisposition to cancer you may want to have genetic testing does. The results of the test can greatly impact your treatment and medical decisions for your children.

Is it going to hurt? Honestly, cancer doesn’t feel like anything. That is why it can be such a scary and deadly disease. I did not feel or notice a thing until I got a bump under my arm. I never felt cancer, I did, however, feel chemotherapy.

Was it worth it to drive so far for treatment when you can go to a doctor close to home? It was a 6-7 hour drive round trip. This drive was taxing for me and my spouse. However, I would definitely recommend treatment at the best possible hospital you can drive to. Once I got to the center everything got better. I was always treated so well. The people who work there are trained to do any and everything they can to make you comfortable. Everything they did, from complimentary valet parking to warm blankets in the waiting room affected my overall experience.

I was also given medicine to combat the side effects of chemotherapy before I got chemotherapy. Numbing cream for my port so my skin doesn’t get sore from being poked with needles often. Anti anxiety medication for chemotherapy days and my overall anxiety. Pain medication for all the unpleasant side effects and pain. Moffitt also has a dog program that allows therapy dogs to come in and socialize with the patients. While sitting in larger lobby areas there are violinist and pianist playing live music. It is unbelievable how many small things made me smile.

We always drove spacious comfortable vehicles to chemotherapy because I would make a bed in the car on the return trip home. We did have to get a hotel room from time to time. My chemotherapy experience was not bad, the cancer that was inside me was bad.

Will I be able to work? Many people do work throughout chemotherapy. Your ability to work will depend on how you respond to treatment. There are people who live their normal everyday lives while receiving chemotherapy. You will have many appointments, surgeries, treatments, side effects, etc. All of these things can or will interfere with your daily activities. I also had several hospitalizations and moments that I could not get out of bed.

I however, was unable to work. The chemotherapy left me with constant fatigue, migraine headaches, neuropathy and a seizure condition. I never know from day to day how my body will feel.