After Treatment Side Effects
Saturday, December 13, 2025
What I’ve come to realize after treatment is that you will never be the same person again. First, let me preface this by saying that most people will agree that the side effects of cancer treatment outweigh the alternatives. However, there are many expected side effects, such as changes in your breasts after a lumpectomy. My tumor was at six o’clock, so my breast now has a chunk out of it at its bottom, making the nipple point straight down. TMI? Probably, and I do apologize, but this is an expected side effect. What isn’t expected is the tightness I feel in my chest wall, the tugging under my armpit, and the pulling feeling in my breast. I should not complain at all, as I only had a lumpectomy. A mastectomy is much more extreme, as are its side effects, and my heart goes out to all women who have endured.
I also have long-term side effects from chemo. The drugs they treated me with gave me nerve damage, which flares up from time to time, and my entire ribcage becomes numb. Neuropathy is a common side effect of chemotherapy, but it mostly shows up in the feet and hands. I have neuropathy in my appendages, but the numbness in my ribs is strange, which leads me to the point that you never know how it is going to affect you after treatment, either. It is essential to realize that, whatever your side effects, you are not alone. Somebody, somewhere, has gone through or will go through similar experiences.
When I asked my oncologist if the chemo could make my arthritis and other normal aging issues worse, she hedged. She did not say yes or no, but she did say that I had been through a lot, which was an understatement. I have always been pretty in tune with my body, and when I was going through chemo, my back, which is arthritic, got a hundred times worse. I know I have degenerative disc disease, but this was almost unbearable. I “know” it was worse during chemo. It is now bearable and back to regular annoyance, except my feet are numb quite a lot. I will have to see to that pretty soon.
I think for me, I want some time not to have to deal with health issues, and mostly, I am healthy. I am not as strong as I used to be. Just watch me try to open a jar of pickles while the sandwich is waiting lol. It is essential to realize that side effects are typical, no matter how strange they seem to you. There are many support groups, like Bezzy, as well as informational websites and organizations like Susan G. Komen. The best place for information, though, is your doctor. Make friends with their NP. They will be your ally, and they can help you through all kinds of issues. What you will realize is that this journey is a learn-as-you-go experience.
We are really the stewards of our own lives. We have to advocate for ourselves and then pay it forward. What has helped me is understanding that there is no manual for recovery. We are all the same but unique at the same time. What should be universal is our desire to support and nurture each other, the most essential component in healing.