Breast cancer and work
I was diag 3/17 tripple positive IDC with aggression my treatments are aggressive chemo. Then surgery then radiation....had 2st round chemo 4 days ago and I work as a nurse in LTC. Is this doable? Anyone experience? Im already so exhausted and afraid to work make it worse
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Nursing is a difficult one; it's physical work, and you are at risk of infections. Have you discussed this with your treatment team? Can you take sick leave while you are having chemo? Working while you are having radiation is a bit different.
Where I used to work, anyone having chemo would not be allowed to work and would have been sent to occupational health for an assessment.
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Triple positive here and I had to take a leave of absence due to infection risk. I am a teacher.
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I am an HR Director who fully expected to work the alternate weeks between chemo and was surprised by the exhaustion, fatigue, low WBC count….all of it. My entire life, I just put my head down, shoulder to the grindstone and powered through….this however took me to my knees. I had to go on short term-then long term disability. During that time I finally realized, my lifelong way of powering through issues was a part of my problem. I learned I need to put Self/Family/Work in that order. I always had it reversed.
Take the time you need/deserve to focus on getting through this.
9 mos later I am about to return to work0 -
Hi @drb816, and welcome to our community!
Thanks for sharing your experiences - we know it can be a LOT to juggle work, treatment, family with added debilitating side effects on top of everything. Congrats for making it through and learning what to prioritize - a valuable lesson for sure!
For some helpful info on what to expect with returning to work, check out our page:
We hope this helps and we look forward to supporting you as you navigate back into the workplace. If we can do anything to help, please let us know!
—The Mods
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