Chemo?

[stacynichole]

I was diagnosed with ovarian cancer last december. I had surgery in January but I was pregnant at the time.  I just had my son a month ago and now thry are ready to start chemo treatments but i'm not sure I am.  A good friend is advising against it saying that its too dangerous and the doctors just want to make money so I thought it would be a good idea to talk to someone who has been thru it.......

[DrNoopurMD]

Hi,

How are you?
The treatment of ovarian cancer depends upon the stage of cancer and how far it has spread.
If it is an early stage cancer surgery will suffice but if it is an advanced stage cancer chemotherapy and radiotherapy becomes essential. Chemotherapy helps to kill cancer cells which are not removed after surgery.
Please take a decision only after consulting with your oncologist. Do keep us posted!

[Brndnsdad]

My wife is an ovarian cancer survivor and is about to reach her four year cancer-free mark. We chose to have the chemotherapy which involved six treatments with each being three weeks apart. We bought her some nice wigs and made the chemo days
"special" days for us to spend time together. Her hair grew back shortly after the chemo ended.
She had made an online friend in a forum similar to this and her friend was diagnosed with stage 2B ovarian cancer just a month before my wife was. Her friend chose not to have the chemotherapy because she was given the option by her doctor and she didn't want to lose her hair. Her friend has had the cancer spread to her stomach, colon and liver and does not have much time left. The chemotherapy is intended to kill any remaining cancer cells that the surgeon cannot see that mey be left behind. I think it was worth every penny.
Good luck to you and take care.

[stacynichole]

Does anyone know of alternative treatments besides chemotherapy and radiation therapy?

[Brndnsdad]

I understand your concerns about the chemotherapy, but treatments have come a long way over the past few years. Ovarian cancer is a serious disease and needs to be treated agressively and monitored for the rest of your life. The chemo my wife received was effective and they have other medications to mitigate the side effects of the chemo. She was able to work while undergoing treatments, only missing the day of and the day after her treatments...a total of 12 days missed over an 18-week period. Radiation is not used for ovarian cancer, but my wife did have it because she had both ovarian and uterine cancers. Radiation is the treatment for uterine cancer. I urge you to speak to your Oncologist and find a local ovarian cancer support group. The chemo is not that bad and the benefits far outweigh the downsides. Take care.

[stacynichole]

Thank you very much for taking the time to reply to me.  I am going to go ahead and try to do the chemotherapy treatments but I don't have very much help and I have a 3 year old and a 1 month old baby.  If the treatments prevent me from caring for them then I will stop.  What sort of side effects did she have? So if she was able to work then does that mean she wasn't sick at all on those days?  What kind of work did she do?  Thank you so much for the encouragement it really helped.

[Brndnsdad]

Sorry it took so long to reply, but we're away for a long weekend to Florida. Her side effects were muscle aches and nausea for the day after the treatment. After that she was fine. They gave her some medication to alleviate the aches and nausea, so they weren't too bad. She tried to "tough out" the first session and didn't take the meds...major mistake. They give them to you for a reason and they work. Once she took them as prescribed she was fine, just resting the next day. She was able to drive to get to the clinic the next day for a follow up shot to boost her immune system. By Monday she was back to normal. She works as a Human Resources executive and puts in pretty long hours and it's a stressful position. She only missed the day of the chemo and the day after every three weeks from work.
I understand your need to be able to take care of your kids. but please take care of yourself first. Your kids need you for a long time to come and if you don't take the treatments... I don't mean to scare you, but this is a very serious disease that requires serious treatment. Find the help you need to watch the kids if at all possible, please.

[stacynichole]

thanks for all your help.  i had my first day of chemo today.  it wasnt as bad as i thought. i mostly just feel achey all over and just a tiny bit nautious. i have to go for 6 hours everyday this week. they say that ill be feeling much worst by the end of the week. do they really give you stuff for the aches? i dont wanna complain...

[Brndnsdad]

Don't be afraid to tell your doctor and nurses how you feel. They had medication to help my wife deal with the side effects. If you're going every day they're treating you differently than they did for my wife, but don't be afraid to tell them everything that is happening. They may be able to make adjustments for you. Take care and good luck!