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Aug 4, 2012 12:15AM
- edited
Aug 4, 2012 02:09AM
by
maize
Cathy1968,
Thankfully, I haven't gotten it, but the surgeon said there will always be the possibility of it because lymph nodes have been removed. Three of my lymph nodes were taken out--luckily no cancer in them. I see there was no cancer found in your nodes, either. I read about a lady who never had lymphedema after lymph node removal, not for years, till she went hiking one day and got stung by a bee. So something like that can set it off, I guess, and it can happen whether several nodes are removed or only one?
I'm glad the surgeon removed the nodes because it makes me feel more certain that the DCIS didn't micro-invade and spread into the lymph nodes. I guess if it does invade at all, then technically, it isn't called DCIS anymore?
I've been trying to change my diet somewhat in the hope that it will prevent the DCIS from returning or prevent getting it in the other breast. In my case, chronic inflammation may have caused the DCIS, though, caused by chronic infection (or infection caused by inflammation?) so I don't know how much of a role diet plays in that case. Some of the doctors say that the diet makes a big difference in preventing recurrence and some say that's wishful thinking, that diet can't give you control over the initiation or development of breast cancer. It seems logical to me that the amount of fat and other elements in the diet have to play a role in how the chemical messengers set off reactions in the breast tissue, since the chemicals or enzymes or whatever communicate with the breast cells. Exercise, too, like, LindaLS mentioned, is supposed to have a beneficial impact, maybe because it lowers the level of fats and that lowers estrogen? It seems they all pretty much agree that obesity = higher risk of cancer. Are women, as they get older, at higher risk of breast cancer because most women gain weight as they get older? Personally, I think that stress releases hormones and/or chemicals that directly cause harm to the body, to the heart and all the rest of the body, if the stress is prolonged. It seems that lack of adequate sleep and working during night hours may play a significant role in the development of breast cancer, according to some of the latest reports. Have you read them? There's so much more to this breast cancer than I ever wanted to have to know..but I feel like it's important that I find out whatever I can about it. Some of the diet aspects seem to be common sense and common knowledge, but some are not clear (to me). I would like to think I have some ability to control whether this comes back or not, but I don't want to become fanatical about it.
Not sure whether to drink milk or not drink milk. One of the docs (not onco) told me that D3 is very important, but not just in breast cancer, but in heart disease and many other diseases and is often low in patients with ANY type of disorder. Did you read about Jane Plant and how she allegedly cured herself of breast cancer? www.alkalizeforhealth.net/Lnot... Or what about the alleged link between a diet high in starches and breast cancer? Are they including starchy vegetables in that? http://news.yahoo.com/starchy-foods-may-boost-risk-breast-cancer-recurrence-220305537.html
I wonder if your neighbor's sister changed her diet after her diagnosis--if she did something different, made some lifestyle changes, that made all the difference?
Not sure whether soy is okay or not (soy is a hidden ingredient in so many foods!). Do you think soy is safe? Not sure whether to take a multiple vitamin or not. One expert said: "Don't take a multivitamin". A pathologist told me that, too, but I do not know why he thought taking vitamins is not good. I think he was saying that the body has to get the vitamins and minerals from the food, not from artificial sources, because the nurtrients from the food are assimilated better. Patrick Swayze's wife said that she was trying to figure out if there was a way to feed him without feeding the cancer...how would it be possible to feed someone with cancer without feeding the cancer? Does the cancer grab the nutrients away from the healthy cells? How much do scientists know about this?
There's that one group who believe that being underweight (significantly underweight) prolongs your life span, but there are also studies that show that being underweight (or overweight) significantly decreases your life span. If we all get and stay underweight, will the DCIS not have enough "food" to develop and to come back? There's too much that is unknown, I think. Linda McCartney was evidently a vegetarian, but she got breast cancer and died from it, so how much did it help her to have that diet? Was it caused by genetics? Did the vegetarian diet keep the impending breast cancer at bay for longer? Did the vegetarian diet cause depletion of certain nutrients that made her immune system weaker? Would she have gotten it anyway, no matter what type of diet she followed? What do you think? Too much is unknown, IMO.