Posted 6/3/2022 12:49 PM (GMT 0)
It depends on patient's age and type and aggressiveness of the cancer what treatment should be taken.
I went with lumpectomy, rads and hormone treatment with my first breast cancer. I wished later that I had only had the lumpectomy. The rads had horrible side effects, cooked the lump area like a piece of microwaved chicken. Hormones made me feel like death was the equivalent of life, so I quit after a year. I found out later that that it wasn't necessary at my advanced age.
For my second bout ten years later, I had the lumpectomy and was going to go with rads, but the surgery left me wanting revision, which can't be done after that. So I had the revision and am just hoping it won't come back. My rad oncologist said it wouldn't make any difference in survival!
Both my cancers were IDC, low oncotypes. That makes a huge difference! I was on Medicare for the first one already, and that makes a difference too! Consulting with the various specialists is important. Reading everything from reliable sources helps, but don't rely on blogs and people on forums like me.