Quite apart from coping with the emotional side of having had breast cancer, there are plenty of physical reminders to make sure I don’t forget what I’ve been through any time soon.
I was thinking I would list the various side effects I’m experiencing in order of annoyance but that’s hard to do. I have different types and levels of pain or discomfort in different areas and each side effect is annoying in a different way. Here goes.
Peripheral neuropathy. I’m still experiencing pain – numbness, tingling and throbbing – in the balls of my feet and toes as a result of the nerve ending damage caused by the chemotherapy drug paclitaxel. This comes and goes, ie it’s not constant, and while it is improving, on some days – if I’ve done a lot of walking, say, or have worn heels – it can get pretty bad. I can’t remember when it last woke me up at night but it’s usually the first thing I’m aware of physically when I wake up in the morning. This can take up to a year to get better, although in some cases it’s permanent. So I’m guess I’m playing a waiting game.
Post-surgical pain. I still have pain – numbness, tingling (but different from the feelings in my feet) and a burning sensation – in the upper inner part of my right arm and what feels like muscle pain where the reconstructed breast meets my chest and below and behind my armpit. This is much less painful than the peripheral neuropathy but it is annoying, as this pain is more or less constant so I’m aware of it most of the time. I’m pretty sure the muscle pain – or what feels like muscle pain – has got worse in the past few days. It’s at its worst when I wake up, especially if I’ve rolled on to my right side while I’ve been sleeping.
The numbness and tingling is caused by nerve damage that happens during surgery to remove lymph nodes from the armpit area. The effects subside as you heal – within about three months for most people – although they can last or become worse months after the surgery. The numbness and tingling is definitely not as bad as it was but it’s still annoying. Another waiting game.
Breast lymphoedema. I saw the radiation oncologist on Monday and, while the cellulitis (It went downhill from there) has evidently cleared up nicely, she mentioned the dreaded L word – yes, lymphoedema – with regard to the persistent swelling in the breast area. Early treatment is recommended to help prevent hardening of the tissues and reduce the risk of you getting cellulitis (please, not again!). So I’m to have a course of manual lymphatic drainage (up to fifteen sessions over up to six weeks), a very gentle form of massage that allows the lymphatic fluid that’s collecting and causing the swelling to be redirected to – untouched and undamaged – lymph vessels in the vicinity where the fluid can drain away more easily. Also, later today, I’m to be fitted for a lovely compression bra. I’m assuming this will be an even sturdier version of the post-surgery bras that I’ve really never stopped wearing since my op on 19th December – other than for a few days during radiotherapy when I had cellulitis and a bad skin reaction to the radiotherapy – because there’s always been some sort of swelling or another. Compression treatment for lymphoedema puts pressure on the area where you have swelling, and the pressure helps the lymph to flow through the lymph vessels. It also acts as an extra force for the muscles to work against, which helps the fluid to drain out of the area.
The swelling is not painful in itself, I suspect mainly because I have no feeling in most of the area in question. At rest, however, my inner upper arm rests against part of the swollen area and this aggravates the already tender upper arm.
By the way, breast lymphoedema I can cope with (Fear of lymphoedema); please let it not spread to my arm.
Cording. Now that the cellulitis has cleared up, I can start having physiotherapy again on the cording, this hardening of the lymph vessels to form tight bands under the skin from the chest or under arm down to the elbow and beyond that can happen after breast cancer surgery involving the axillary lymph nodes. The cording is not painful as such but, again, that’s because I have limited sensation in the affected area. I also know to limit my movements so that it doesn’t hurt where I do have feeling. It’s only painful in those areas when I forget and try to stretch further than I am able to. With physio and the arm and shoulder mobility exercises I’m continuing to do every day, the cording should go over the next few months.
Hip-to-hip scar. I was really nervous about the potential consequences of the surgery to get the fat and blood vessels from my abdomen for my reconstruction. While the immediate aftermath was tough, it’s the part that’s giving me the least trouble now in terms of ongoing post-surgical pain and/or discomfort. The scar that runs from one hipbone to the other has healed well really well (there’s just one small area of less than an inch long where it’s a bit messy) and while the surrounding skin can still feel very tight and hard in some places, there’s no pain. Discomfort, yes, but not pain. I’ve been shown how to massage the area above the scar to loosen the skin up and I do abdominal stretching and strengthening excercises at least twice daily. Things should continue to improve.
Lost toenails. Chemo played havoc with my nails, especially my toenails (Note to self – keep your toes covered when trying on shoes). The nails on my two big toes are in the process of growing out and the nails I lost on four other toes are growing back in*.
I think that’s it on the physical side effects front.
And then there are the drugs:
Hormone tablets. I take one tablet of letrozole every day and will do so for the next five years, when I’ll move on to a different hormone therapy, for another five years. I count myself lucky in that I seem to be tolerating letrozole very well; I have no side effects to speak of.
Calcium and Vitamin D supplements. Letrozole can cause osteoporosis; the calcium and Vitamin D supplements I take daily are to counteract the effects of the letrozole in this regard.
Iron tablets. I’m still taking these three times a day for post-operative anaemia. I stop taking them in a few days, three months after my op.
Zoledronic acid. I’m to have my next cycle of the bone hardening drug, zoledronic acid, this coming Monday. Thereafter I’m to have it every six months for as long as I’m on letrozole. This drug – and other drugs of its kind (bisphosphonates) – is used in the treatment of post-menopausal women with early-stage breast cancer as it’s been shown to lower the risk of them developing osteoporosis and of breast cancer spreading to the bones. This treatment is given via an iv drip in the chemo unit at the clinic.
Now none of the lingering side effects I’ve described above is so painful that I have to take painkillers. And I’m otherwise quite well, if still pretty whacked. And it’s still early days and hopefully everything will get better over time. But for the moment these things are annoying and they do cause pain and/or discomfort. They – and the drugs and exercises that I still need to take or do – are obvious reminders of what my body’s been through over the past seven months. I used to think I’d been quite lucky in terms of physical side effects. Reading back through this latest post, now I’m not so sure. I guess it’s all relative and no-one said it would be easy. One thing is certain, though. Regardless of how I deal with the emotional side of things, physically I’m really not going to forget any time soon that I had breast cancer, am I?
*My fingernails are looking great, I’m relieved to report.
iamtheoneineight 