I passed the test! Or, at least I scored low enough that I was able to convince my oncologist that I could take my chances and forego chemotherapy.Dr. Bertrand is a tough doctor who aggressively fights cancers. She tends to want to err on the side of “over-treatment”. I am more inclined to trust the integrity of my body with as little drug interference as possible. Without a low score on this test, I would have had a difficult time arguing my case with Dr. B. I think that she must see a lot of people die from cancer.
The test basically says that my chance for a recurrence of the cancer within 10 years is 9%. Chemotherapy would lower that risk to 7%. 2% is not worth it, in my opinion.
She did prescribe an estrogen blocker, Femara. There are some side effects – hot flashes, muscle aches, fatigue, fluid retention … and the long-term safety has not been established. Gee. We’ll see how this goes.
I have tentatively scheduled my breast reconstruction surgery for March 12th, Dr. L’s first available surgical time.
And the good news is that after my appointment with Dr. Rimmer today, I will have no more medical appointments for at least 3 weeks! This is the first time since last October that I have not had 2 or 3 or more doctor things to do in a week.
