Living with Breast Cancer
Breast cancer can psychologically affect women. Breasts are a profound source of self image for women. When the breast is removed, this can affect you psychologically. All hospitals including Cancer Disease Hospital have counselors to help you cope with the disease.The majority of women can return to normal employment after any type of breast cancer surgery.
In addition, most are able to enjoy all types of physical recreation, including different types of sport. You will be able to do your normal activities at home such as cleaning your house, going to the market and taking care of your kids.
Do you have fear that the disease will come again?
Women with breast cancer often assume that changes in the treated breast or other areas of their bodies may be a sign that cancer has returned. Yet many such changes are expected side effects of treatment.Radiation therapy (which is treatment with light rays) may cause changes in the breast area, such as:
- reddening or peeling of the skin
- dimpling of the skin over the breast like a peel of an orange
- loss of underarm hair
- tingling sensations
- skin thickening that causes the breast to become firmer to the touch and slightly smaller in size.
Therefore, you are encouraged to contact your doctor to determine if your symptoms are any cause for concern.
Does breast cancer affect your sexuality?
Your partner may be having fear of catching the disease. Your partner cannot catch the disease from you.After breast surgery, many women consider themselves repulsive and may be inhibited during lovemaking. Yet men often claim that their love is not impaired by the loss of their wives' breasts and - if anything - it increases the strength of the bond with their spouse. Therefore specific sexual counseling may be very helpful after breast cancer is diagnosed.
How can the disease be prevented from coming again or relapsing after treatment?
One of the difficult problems with breast cancer is that it may come again, even though initial treatment appeared successful. Such new cancer develop near the site of the original cancer or in a distant part of the body.A recurrence of cancer many years after breast cancer surgery is more likely if the it had spread to the armpit at the time of the original operation.
To reduce the chance of the disease coming back again, your doctor will give you medicine to prevent this. This is known as chemotherapy.The secret for breast cancer to be cured is in seeking help early and the Cancer Diseases Hospital (CDH) provides a good opportunity for cancerpatients to be treated in good time and avoid premature deaths
