Diagnosed with Stage I Breast Cancer - Start Here!
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Treatment Options by Cancer Stage: Stage IA and IB
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The Mods
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Had my 1st TCH infusion Wed the 28th, had a fairly good experience. No nausea or vomiting, adverse reactions, had very dry mouth and some soreness but not sores, no taste. Day 5 began to get stomach issues and a little nausea. Went for check in Day8, turns out I have C-diff now taking vancomycin. Still not much taste and mouth feels like it’s been through it. Just struggling knowing I have to do this 5 more times. Anyone been here before? How do you power through. My Faith is helping and I know I can do hard things but my weakness comes through and I’m a little dejected right now!!!!
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Hi again @julesp40!
Welcome again to our amazing community! We're so sorry you're having such a difficult time with chemo.
You might find it helpful to post your experience on our May 2025 or June 2025 Chemo Support threads to see if anyone else is having a similar situation, and help encourage one another through. There are also a ton of other threads that might address the issues you're having. Take a look at our Chemo - Before During and After forum.
Also, you may find support in one (or both) of our free, weekly Going Through Treatment Virtual Support Groups. Join us!
We hope this helps — you've got this!
—The Mods
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I have chosen to forego any conventional treatment other than a total unilateral mastectomy for Stage 1 ER/PR+ Her2- Node Neg. breast cancer. It was not found in lymph nodes and for the location it afforded me the peace of mind moving forward totally following with Functional Medicine M.D. working with my PCP and Breast Cancer Surgeon. I do NOT have to get any radition. Radiation is a known carcinogen and I wasn't willing to take my chances. Also, chemo is a known carcinogen and I also wasn't going to take my chances. AI's destroy a woman's estrogen which can cause many medical downstream events later on as its effect once on them are residual. I felt I was dealt a gracious blow giving me the best chance moving forward. That said, going Functional Medicine is a "full time" vigilance requiring strict adherence and diligence to a new me "lifestyle" change, physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. And it requires great diligence and care in all areas of my life regarding detoxing. Threw out ALL my cosmetics, and personal care items, cookware and food storage, buying mostly all orgainic, grass fed/finished meats, cleaning products, had our home tested, well tested, etc. After rigorous tests, for me, it appears I have many genetic SNP's that would have rendered chemo or AI contraindicated. I am blessed to have found all this out as it verifies to me the path I am on is the right one. All is well. I have only gotten better since my diagnosis. In fact, I didn't even know how bad I felt prior to the BC diagnosis. I suppose I had normalize "not feeling good". The difference is night and day. I think the gluten free was one of the main changers. I always ate gluten and never thought anything about it. But tests since have found I have actual celiacs. Did not know that many women find they have celiacs when they are diagnosed with BC later in life. It can be one of those precursors. But if you are diagnosed early in life, you will seldom present with BC. Wild fact. If I were to have been presented with another type of BC, I know for sure I would not attempt any conventional oncology without doing so with a Naturopathic Integrative Oncologist, one that actually is an oncologist that integrates all the above plus off label drugs and tests that have been run on me.
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@iambbq2u wow so happy for u! As for me, I am lucky as the cancer was caught super early. High grade dcis 5cm w single focus 1.3mm invasive. No lymph nodes involved. I opted for BMX w reconstruction implants. No radiation or chemo. I haven't seen an integrative doc but I'm trying to be more mindful about my diet and exercise!
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@snm I feel blessed. I have so many friends who have had more aggressive diagnosis from the start. All have taken different paths. Some are NED, others are living well with metastasis. Teaches you a lot about life and living. I have so much to learn. But I have learned to embrace the journey with thanksgiving and contentment and refuse to be overcome by fear. I can give thanks, and I do daily, as so many blessings have come my way daily.
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