Adjusting to Chemotherapy Treatment
- TV and theatre actress Samantha Womack, 49, says she has been having a hard time with chemotherapy treatment for breast cancer, which many cancer patients can unfortunately relate to. However,
- The English star says she has been struggling with migraines, but the good news is, she has been getting her appetite back since her first treatment. Samantha and her partner just relocated to the mountains of Valencia, Spain, and showed off a healthy-looking paella on her Instagram page.
- Experts say that trying to eat smaller, lighter meals throughout the day is generally a good rule of thumb when going through treatment. The steroids that are typically mixed in with the infusion help with a patient’s appetite, but if you are struggling to eat, even some crackers will help. And lots of water! Staying as hydrated as possible will help with the headaches, or in this case, migraines.
Known for her role of Ronnie Mitchell in the wildly popular EastEnders show, the Brighton, England native took to Instagram to vent some of her ups and downs to her supportive fans. Samantha, who announced her breast cancer battle two weeks ago, just began treatment.
Read MoreThough the Narnia star adds that she has been “struggling with migraines,” the fact that she is starting to get hungry again is a positive sign, as people fighting cancer need fuel to regenerate those cells and recover from the downside of treatment. And apparently, her partner, fellow actor Oliver Farnworth, 40, has been making sure she is fed.
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Fighting Through Side Effects
Cancer survivors tell us that trying to eat smaller, lighter meals throughout the day is generally a good rule of thumb when going through treatment. The steroids that are typically mixed in with the infusion help with a patient’s appetite, but if you are struggling to eat, even some crackers will help. And lots of water! Staying as hydrated as possible will help with the headaches, or in this case, migraines. Go easy on yourself activity-wise (light walking is said to help) and always listen to your body.
Additionally, surrounding yourself in serenityif possibleis always a good idea.
Samantha and “Oli,” as she calls him, just recently moved to the mountains of Valencia in Spain, which sounds like a beautiful place to comfort and heal through cancer.
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If you don’t have the luxury to go somewhere relaxing, try booking a staycation or just surround yourself with nature for a day. Just little jaunts of peace can do wonders for your soul as you go through treatment.
Chemotherapy for Breast Cancer
Chemotherapy for breast cancer uses strong drugs to kill cancer all over the body. It is possible that patients get this treatment to shrink a tumor before surgery, afterward to get rid of any remaining cancer cells or on its own if the patient cannot have surgery.
Related: Managing Chemotherapy Side Effects
In Womack's case, she is having chemotherapy after surgery. Whether or not to have chemotherapy can also be the patient's choice, depending on their age, the type of cancer they have and its stage.
What Can You Do to Strengthen Your Body During Cancer Treatment?
If the patient's breast cancer is triple-negative, which means the three main types of receptors estrogen, progesterone and the HER2 protein do not fuel the cancer, chemotherapy is typically the treatment. This is because the cancer does not respond to certain targeted therapies.
Women who are diagnosed with HER2-positive breast cancer have high levels of the HER2 protein on the outside of their cancer cells. For patients with early-stage disease, meaning they have relatively small tumors and no lymph involvement, a number of HER2-directed therapies have dramatically changed the landscape. These include chemotherapy drug trastuzumab (brand name: Herceptin), as well as pertuzumab (brand name: Perjeta), which is a monoclonal antibody used in combination with chemotherapy.
"Chemotherapy that we give currently is not the chemotherapy from days gone by," says Dr. Matthew Carlson, an oncologist at UT Southwestern Medical Center. Patients are not vomiting and stuck in bed for weeks on end or coming into the hospital."
However, the drugs today may still result in some nausea.
The best way to manage chemotherapy side effects is to prepare for them. Dr. Carlson offers some examples of helpful ways to manage chemo side effects:
For nausea, doctors will usually prescribe effective medications, including Zofran to help.
"We have many, many, many medications that we give before, during, and after chemotherapy that should minimize the nausea that patients experience," Dr. Carlson says, adding that there are also quite a few medications available for constipation and diarrhea, though doctors may recommend dietary modifications first.
For fatigue, while there aren't quite medications the way there are for nausea, Dr. Carlson says that some patients may find it helpful to complement their treatment with alternative medicine supplements such as American Ginseng.
And then there's the chemotherapy side effect that everyone asks about: hair loss.
"When it comes to the hair loss that's associated with chemotherapy, we can't keep you with a full head of hair through your chemotherapy," says Dr. Carlson.
So, yes, hair loss can be expected with the chemo drugs commonly used for ovarian cancer, carboplatin and Taxol. But just like with the other side effects, there are methods available to help.
Wigs, scarves, caps, and cutting your hair short can all help, as can scalp-cooling devices, which can prevent some (though not all) of hair loss. Of course, it's really important to remember that hair loss is only temporary, and that your hair will grow back after the treatment ends.
Symptoms of Breast Cancer
Being aware of how your breasts normally look and feel is an important factor when it comes to breast cancer detection. Doing regular self-exams is one way to familiarize yourself with how your breasts normally feel, so that you will be able to identify anything out of the ordinary like a lump or hard mass. Below are some other symptoms to look out for.
- New lump in the breast or underarm (armpit)
- Any change in the size or the shape of the breast
- Swelling on all or part of the breast
- Skin dimpling or peeling
- Breast or nipple pain
- Nipple turning inward
- Redness or scaliness of breast or nipple skin
- Nipple discharge (not associated with breast feeding)
Of course, these symptoms can be due to things other than cancer. For example, a lot of women experience breast tenderness during certain times in their menstrual cycles. If you're worried talk to your doctor about it. They may want to perform an exam, or even schedule a mammogram just to be safe.
Contributing by SurvivorNet staff.
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