You’ve had breast cancer, you’ve been treated for it, and now it’s time to get on with your life. But your life has changed, and you have to adjust to your new situation on a number of levels.
Survivorship means being followed for the rest of your life. At a minimum, the follow-up involves regular monitoring for a recurrence. This should include routine discussion of whatever symptoms you might have or problems resulting from the treatments you have had, a physical, and a yearly mammogram. If you are taking tamoxifen, you should also have a yearly pelvic exam.
It also means being aware of chronic treatment-related side effects, such as fatigue, sexual dysfunction, “chemo brain,” and pain syndromes, and monitoring for potential late effects of treatment, such as heart disease, lymphedema, and second non-breast cancer malignancies.
While this might sound depressing, it shouldn’t. It means that we now have enough experience with survivorship to know what to look for and what to do about it.
Tips for Staying Healthy
Have regular follow-up exams.
You should schedule regular follow-up examinations with your surgeon and other members of your medical team. These exams will assess how you are healing, as well as to find any signs of recurrence or of problems resulting from the therapy. If at any time you have a new symptom that doesn’t go away in a week or two, you should schedule an appointment to have it checked out.
Get regular mammograms.
Your surgeon will probably want you to have mammograms every six months for a year or two, and then once a year. In addition to monitoring the treated breast, the doctor will examine your other breast yearly for the possible development of a new cancer, since women with cancer in one breast have an increased risk of getting it in the other. This is particularly important if you have a BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutation. In this situation, MRI may be done as well.
Maintain insurance policies.
Whatever you do, don’t let your insurance coverage lapse. If you’re already employed, then you know your company cannot drop your policy. However, many insurance companies won’t sign on a new client with a life-threatening illness. Some insurers will agree to a limited policy that covers everything but claims related to your illness. If you are in the midst of changing jobs and switching to the plan offered through the new company, make certain your coverage will remain intact. And, if you take a break from work, be sure to maintain insurance coverage on your own. It may be more expensive, but you want coverage in case of a recurrence.
