My first question here...

Hello, I just came in to ask about this as my first question here.  I’m 63, just had surgery and have oncology and radiation appointments next week. I have several chronic illnesses and need to know whether rads and/ or chemo is going to be worth it.

Hi @LibbyA  and welcome. The people on this forum are wonderful and someone will be along shortly to answer your questions better than me. Your doctors will take your illnesses into account when sorting out your treatment. From there it is up to you. Everybody responds so differently. My arthritis disappeared during chemo which is unusual, but reappeared when I came off it. Any issues that came up they either adjusted the chemo or gave me counteracting drugs to deal with it.

Hello LibbyA,
As always, the decisions are personal. I am in your age bracket. First and foremost for me was the importance of not feeling unduly rushed, to go to the initial oncology and radiology appointments and get the information needed and ask questions. For me personally I needed to take into account some of the following: 1)any other medical or debilitating conditions I have, 2)the support or assistance I may readily receive from those in my life, 3)the day-to-day practicalities of dealing with treatment options, not just the positive or negative health impacts involved. Other well informed contributors in this forum will no doubt, be of help. My lovely GP says to me "Take a deep breath or two & decide what's best for your life".

Hi there @LibbyA. I'm 60 and was diagnosed almost three years ago. I have three different but overlapping autoimmune diseases. Between them, I form blood clots and have been on warfarin for about twenty years. (previous pulmonary embolisms and dvt s. I also have a condition which affects all the connective tissue in my body and causes those tissues to harden.... Lung problems, kidney disease, joint stiffness, skin stiffness and damaged blood vessels. I could go on and on, but the point I want to make is that although I came to the "party" (some f***en party) I already had major health issues. I wasn't given the option of radiotherapy due to my already buggered lungs but did have six months of chemo. That was also a mission, due to the other health problems, but I did make it over the finish line. I'm a public patient at a major teaching hospital and all my various "ologists" got together to formulate a plan of action specifically tailored for me. My thing was I chose one of my team to be the piggy in the middle between all the other players, so that each one knew what the other one was doing. And also how I was doing. I recommend you do the same, either your GP or one of your specialists. Then trust them, but also trust your own gut. If you're not happy with something, ask, ask and ask again if necessary, until you get the answers you understand and are happy with. Good luck with your ongoing treatment, and remember, we're all here for you with any things you want to discuss or even just offload. Best wishes...Ally.

Hullo @LibbyA, I was older than you and concerned about after effects of treatment. Wanted to maximise quality of life. Very important to make sure you fully understand your pathology and its implications. I did not realise what mine really meant or why they were pushing me to chemo so enthusiastically nor did I feel my pre-existing conditions had been properly addressed. I did not have anyone to ask for an objective assesment. In the end I said no to chemo but had everything else. I will never know if that was the best decision and now 18 months on I think about it more than ever. Mental/emotional condition worse than anything physical. Take your time, if in doubt try for a second opinion, don’t do anything without understanding why it is being recommended. It is also important where you are eg rural or urban and what options you realistically have. Although things are definitely changing there is still a tick-the-box mentality in some quarters. This is a really difficult time and we all wish you as much support and understanding as you can get, and as others have said ask here anytime.

Thank you all for the replies.  ValerieLouise, I’m sorry fir hijacking your post.  I was so happy someone in the world felt the same as I do.   

  :) <3

Hi @LibbyA
I was 67 when diagnosed but apart from a bit of high blood pressure, I was pretty healthy. I did everything recommended - mastectomy, chemo, herceptin, letrozole. So far so good - no evidence of disease, no energy issues, mental health is good, worked through treatment. But - heaven forfend - would I do it again? I have lymphoedema, completely manageable but if the right breast had to go too and lymph nodes were involved, could I manage two lymphoedemic arms? I developed an arrythmia - mixed views as to what caused it but no susceptibility before chemo - so I would have to consider the impact of another bout of chemo. I am not sure if my bone density will hold out for 10 years of letrozole, may stop earlier. My feet were affected and still are by chemo. A second bout could limit my mobility. Main thing is to get an honest appraisal of the impact of treatment on your existing conditions. Then consider what you are prepared to try. If the effects are too severe, you can stop. And know what you are not prepared to try. There are good stats to show that treatment is worth doing but there are also no guarantees. No matter how good your medical team, you are the captain of your own ship and you decide on the voyage route. Cancer is just a very impertinent reminder of that fact. Best wishes.