Breast cancerRemission
I was 39 years old when I was diagnosed with breast cancer. I already had a child and wasn’t planning on having any more, so fertility preservation wasn’t a concern for me. However, what I wish someone had told me was that chemotherapy could put me into premature menopause. I had absolutely no idea.
Chemotherapy completely shut down my ovaries, and I experienced horrible hot flashes and menopausal symptoms almost immediately. I’m now 43 and still in menopause.
What made it especially difficult was how abruptly it happened. Rather than gradually transitioning into menopause over several years, my body was essentially thrown into it overnight. There was no time to prepare, physically or emotionally.
I absolutely would have made the same decision to undergo chemotherapy. I don’t regret my treatment. But I do wish my doctors had taken the time to explain that, at just 39 years old, I could experience sudden menopause and potentially never regain ovarian function.
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