At last, my final week!

It's my last week of treatment this week and I am feeling really great about it.

I have found the radiotherapy has flown by so far and after 6 months of slogging through chemotherapy it seems like a walk in the park. I did expect the worst and made lots of contingency plans in case I couldn't cope but I seem to have got through them OK so far (with a little help now and then). The after-affects can continue for some time so I will need to just bear this in mind, but I am definitely on the up-and-up energy wise. Plus, the doc said my breast was doing "beautifully" so far :D

This week is "Boosters"... which means still going to the same place and the same machine, however they attach this contraption-thing that extends down and down until it touches your skin. Then Zap and its over!


A meeting with The Doctor....
Today I have also had a meeting with the Doc that I was supposed to see last week but she wasn't in. It has been a really productive meeting and I am feeling much better about it than after the meeting with the substitute doctor last week.
This time I was at least looked at and checked over when I told her about my aches and pains instead of being dismissed with a "phuh, it's nothing!"[aka don't-waste-my-time paranoid patient!]. It doesn't take much to just at least listen to my worries (be them paranoid or not) and check me over. Ahhh and my mind is at rest (for now ;-D)
I just feel really reassured that I have had a good check over, feel, listen, prod and poke! She is also going to send me for a CT scan and bone scan just to check things over and get a good baseline for future reference. They should happen in the next few weeks.


Also on the agenda was the "To be (treated), or not to be (treated with tamoxifen)" question.
This is really the million-dollar question and I don't have an answer as yet. This doctor seemed to be erring on the side of treatment not being worth it in my case. (I got the impression she didn't think she would put herself through it).

And now for the science....
Essentially, I was tested for hormone receptors by a core-biopsy which came back with a score of 3/8+, however, the score was negative (0/8) on the final lumpectomy pathology.
So, my cancer may or may not be responding weekly to oestrogen hormones. Therefore the benefit to having hormonal treatments could be really small. So, do I take the hormone therapies which are not without side effects and risks themselves (but doesn't every pill you pop); Tamoxifen can give rise to general menopausal side effects and can in rare cases increase the risk of blood clots and womb cancer. Zoladex is supposed to be temporary and so I should get my fertility (what's left of it hopefully, fingers crossed, touch wood etc etc.) back afterwards but still it is a drug affecting my ovaries and that might not always be the case. So can you tell my mind is a little bit swamped by this decision he he....

I must admit, it is very appealing to not have to have any more treatments and to be a "patient" no longer. This will be a subject James and I will be ruminating over during the next few weeks. I am going back to the oncologist on the 14th Aug to further discuss this with her too. But although it is a decision that needs to be made I don't feel too daunted or shook up by having to make it at the moment.

So for now let's just get these boosters over and done with!