Topic: Nurses with Breast Cancer

Hello everyone...I'm new to the website and so glad I found this leg of the forum!!  I have been an RN for 18 years....med surg for a few years, oncology for 4 years then telemetry, dabbled in IV therapy and recovery room and have been in the Cardiac Intensive Care unit for the last 5 working full time nocs, 12 hour shifts. I had been doing charge nursing and working on the rapid response team and had 2 sentinel events in December (prior to diagnosis) caused by the same CRNA that I had to go to tons of meetings for....nothing like a little stress, right?  And YES, night shift was my risk factor for breast cancer- ugh!!  (I had an aunt who had bc but a different type and my BRCA was negative). My manager has been very supportive and I took short term disability at diagnosis...being superwoman I thought I could work but when everyone was crying, including some of the Dr's I knew I couldn't do it.  In fact, now that I'm done with mastectomy and facing more chemo with rads the Dr said I could go back BUT I work in a cesspool of germs and have opted to shift to long term disability (I don't need ssdi yet).  My hospital will hold a job in house til July of next year so I have time....and my manager has assured me a job on my floor (thankfully).  I haven't read all the pages of this forum but was wondering if any of you went back to full time nocs?  I'm hoping to go back after the first of the year.  My unit will allow me to work 4 hour shifts to start and work my way back....just not sure what to do.  I have inflammatory breast cancer and the risk of recurrence in the first few years is very high and working full time would help my family in case I need to go on SSDI.  I have a friend on my unit that battled bc and is 5 years out and she is glad she came back to our floor, despite the stress because of the great patient care.  She thought I would be frustrated if I went to a less stressful but higher acuity area say like tele.  So that's my scoop....thanks for listening and for your thoughts...

Carole 

I know what you are going through. For I work with only breast cancer patients. I am stuggling to return to work with is population. How are you coping. I found is difficult to llive this everyday and never get a break. any suggestions.  I am here if you need someone who understands  keep strong anne

Hi, I have been posting primarily on the July Chemo group had looked on this thread but did not see any updated post, but I need to talk to nurses, you all know what I am going through, I am a CCU RN x12 years before that I was med/surg and at one time even gave chemo, I have been an RN for 24 years, I was dx with IDC with a 8mm tumor, in April;l, I had a lumpectomy and SNB, then all hell broke loose....one node positive, because the cancer looked aggressive my ONC insisted on bilat mastectomy, my PS refused to do tissue expanders unless he knew my breasts were cancer neg and no one could believe a 8mm tumor would shoot of to a node so I next i had a right radical node dissection and SNB on the Left side. then a week later bilat mastectomy with tissue expanders. I am now on chemo, taxotere and Cytoxan, round 2 of 4. I have been out of work for over 2 months when my manager said I would loose my position if I stayed out threw out the course and i was running out of FMLA days, so, I went back to work. I have worked 4-12 hour shifts so far and it hasn't been that bad, but I am now being pushed to work a schedule ( I had been calling and telling them when I feel like working) Chemo knocks me out for over a week. then I try to work at least 2 day the other weeks

Hi lorijo,

It's too bad they want you to commit to a schedule when you are dealing with the chemo. If your place is like my place, they can use help most any day you are available. Can you have your chemo scheduled in advance then work your schedule around that? Maybe you could commit to a day or two, then work in other days when you feel better.

  Is there another area at your hospital that may be more understanding of how you feel with the chemo that would be more flexible?

Good luck with the schedule.

thank you foor your concern, the group I work with is wonderful and very helpful, but management  is only for the money, I only have 2 more treatments and the side effects haven't been that bad, I just have a extreem malaise for about a week after chemo. I love being a CCU nurse but it is a  hard job.

I read a book a while back...Women of Silence:The Emotional Healing of Breast Cancer. 

I did not necessairly agree with everything the author suggested but did find it very interesting and  many descriptions of the typical Breast Cancer woman sure hit the nail on the head as far as my life and personality were concerned. Just one of many non-medical concepts out there. Interesting correlations between the high rate of breast cancer in women who are the fixing, caring, nurturing type and those that tend to take on the emotional pain and stress of others: ie nurses etc. There have also been ongoing studies/correlation between those who work the grave yard shift and their melatonon levels. Most night jobs for women are in nursing.

Lorijo--I was shocked to read you would lose your job.  Don't you have medical/personal leaves of absences?  I can be off for up to a year without losing my job--but I work in a huge facility.  I too am a CCU RN.  I have a friend at work who took a year off for breast cancer treatment and has successfully returned to work but has reminded me NOT to work night shift and watch the stress level...especially in CCU.  My only risk factors for breast cancer were 18 years of night shift and working in a stressful environment! Hang in there!

Debbie,

Sorry to hear about your sister and about your mets also. As nurses we are so used to taking care of everybody else, it is hard to ask for help. Thanks for encouraging us to reach out. I'm sure your sister appreciated you looking to see what she needed. You probably got it right more often than you know.

Good luck to you.

I haven't posted on this thread for a while, but as a BC patient I found it extremely comforting that my Dr. is a cancer survivor and so is his nurse, she has has a bilateral mx. and so has my Radiologist!

I felt their compassion and I felt like they would make better choices for me because we had this disease in common. Now if that is true or not I don't know but that is how I felt. I had to tell them to talk to me as if i wasn't a nurse because I was totally in the dark about BC. Just wanted to share that with those wondering about returning to oncology, I can't say what it will be like for you or if it will be like living CA, all the time, but I think it will be a comforting fact to your patients. Just my 2 cents.

Wonderful...a place just for us! I'm retired now, but back when the world was young I was Chief Flight Nurse for a Helicopter Trauma Program in Texas and Nurse Manager of the Trauma Center.

Like many, I started out with a dx of DCIS this past May but surgical pathology showed microinvasion so I'm now officially IDC (or, according to some, DCIS with microinvasion!). I had L mx with immediate MS2 free Tram Reconstruction. I'm now scheduled Nov. 25th for my 2nd phase surgery. Happy Thanksgiving....and I do mean that seriously! I just hope I can get checked out Thanksgiving morning and back home for the football game....and being fairly concious would be a plus!

Does anyone here have any experience with Phase 2? I'm having lipo on my hips, dog ear revision, lipo on the new breast for shaping and an implant on the right for symmetry. Any info would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks, 2Hands4me....I've posted there and am awaiting the words of wisdom:-)

Hi All I'm new here but not to the boards.  I have been on the board since early October.& I was dx on Oct. 22, 2009 and had surgery on 10/29/09.  I had a right breast lumpectomy and sentinel node biopsy.& I have been off work for almost 2 weeks recovering.  I have been an LPN for 27 yrs.& I am the Director of Nursing at an Assisted Living Community.  I spent 24 yrs in a Nursing Home environment and was a MDS Coordinator and Care Plan Coordinator.  I have never worked in a hospital setting.  I have been having to learn alot about breast cancer because there were many things I  didn't know.  I'm glad I found you all.