So I’ve had my surgery,chemo and rads. I’ve been signed off and pretty much left to it. Never been given any kind of diatary advice,even before treatment, but found out quite a bit through the lovely ladies on here.
I was diagnosed with a stage 1, grade 3 BC. My onc has convinced me through his bedside manner that it will return! Obviously I’d like to do what I can to help myself stay healthy while trying to not give the cancer a body to thrive in.
I’d like to get fit, lose a stone in weight and adapt my diet. Dietary wise I would like to be healthier, perhaps eat less red meat and more fruit and veg. I guess still allow myself to a treat here and there.
I have read about vegan diets being best,no alcohol or sweet stuff…then I also think I wouldn’t enjoy living like that!!! Ultimately I don’t want to feel guilty having the odd glass of wine either!!!
My question is, what changes to your diet have you made and what did you base these choices on??? Thank you x
Hi Xena,
There is so much information about what we should and shouldn’t be eating and drinking and not enough hard evidence in my opinion to back any of it up, super fit clean living people get cancer too, I bet if we looked at everyone on this forum we would all have different lifestyles, fitness levels , diets etc but we all still got breast cancer.
Personally I eat quite healthily because I always have done, been a slimming world member for years and adapt what I eat around that plan, I drink probably more now than I did before I was diagnosed but life would be no fun without a G&T in my opinion!
Im all for being fit and healthy but as to whether it has any bearing on us getting cancer or not I’m still to be convinced! Xx Jo
Hi Xena, I don’t think there are many things that divide cancer patients more than lifestyle and mainly diet! My thoughts are that most cancers are a result of several things/circumstances and I’m firmly in the ‘I made changes camp’ as I feel much better for it and got an NED scan 3-4 months after being diagnosed straight to stage 4. Also my mum who had a very aggressive cancer (not breast) lived a good quality of life for much longer than had been expected compared to the few other patients with the same diagnosis the regional cancer hospital had previously had, so it already made sense to me. Both my mum and I ate reasonably healthily but we both had a sweet tooth, both of us were very active, never overweight or smoked, but we were both very much night owls. I had a stressful job, my mum had experienced much stress following the death of two younger brothers. Anyway, I believe making the changes I did helped me a lot, my scans remain NED and blood test results are always good. I’m not vegan, my diet is plant based though, and I eat organic whenever I can, I still don’t eat processed sugar but I don’t miss it now, that said I started eating medjoul dates when I gave up sugar and love them! I rarely eat meat but that isn’t a problem for me, and use non dairy or goats milk, and now prefer it, which proves to me your taste buds do change. I’m no longer a night owl and avoid stress as much as I can. I’d recommend the canceractive website, foodforbreastcancer.com and nutritionfacts.org if you haven’t found them already, and make changes that feel right for you. My thinking isn’t that this will cure me but it works for me, and my aim is to keep myself as healthy as possible for whatever lies ahead! Best wishes, Kxx
Both really great view points. Thank you so much for your replies and also the links.
I think I feel I would like to make some changes but as you have both said, what works and fits with my life. I definitely feel I should be getting more sleep though! Always a night owl and its such a habit, shall tackle that first I think.
Well I have cut out all sugar I have changed to almond milk. I try to eat fresh food but occasionally lapse due to having to feed my ravenous hubby!! Man likes meat!!! I eat more fruit,salads,veg,nuts;seeds and try to use herbs and garlic when I cook. I have pomegranate seeds every day and drink alkaline water with lemon and bi-carb. I take supplements too such as magnesium and vit d3. I also use chai seeds on my sakes and in My organic oats for breakfast. I do feel much better for my dietary changes and combined with my exercise routine, walking,spinning, body pump I have lost over a stone in 4 months. The main thing I did was stop smoking before my surgery back in November and I have not had one since. I struggle with the alcohol ban as I do enjoy a few drinks with hubby and friends in our local. I have cut down a lot though because us girls used to cane those bottles of prosecco!!! Lol???
Hi Xena, I’m overweight so have made a very conscious effort to lose some! After all, the larger I am the more oestrogen there is knocking about for my type of cancer to feed on. I bought two great recipe books from a well known on line store. One is the Royal Marsden cook book, and the other is the Maggies cook book. What I like about these is that foods are highlighted to help us in various situations. Feeling a bit nauseous, lethargic , loosing too much weight ( I wish!) There is also some sensible reading material at the front of both books relating to different cancers. Not scary or foody fanatical, but good tips. I use a lot more turmeric in my cooking now, putting it into soups as well as the usual curries. Mangoes,pineapples and pomegranate seeds are a staple on my shopping list. If possible ( the price being right - and I’m good at the reduced counter) I avoid things that have been fed on oestrogen or other hormone based feeds. I do feel a lot better having lost weight and gone down a dress size . Unfortunately, what I’m saving in fresh home cooking I’m spending on clothes!
Theres a great on line site that someone has already mentioned here that gives advice on foods good and bad for those of us on aromatise inhibitors. That’s worth a look, I think. X
Hi Kate I haven’t yet bought a water filter as such but I do use a water bottle that has a filter inside it!! I fill that first then take any water I use from that during the day. It’s a large ‘noddle’ bottle which is also bpa free. Annie I also found a book on Amazon called ’ take breast cancer off your menu '. Loads of dietary advice and a very interesting read. Never knew before my diagnosis how much our diets actually affect oestrogen levels in our bodies!!
Turmeric is great for us ladies and also for other illnesses and ailments!!???
I will check that book out too. Thanks for the info xx
Sorry it’s bobble not noddle!!! ??
Xena thats interesting i was stage 2b grade 3 was told there was possible vascular invasion too had the surgery with 6 nodes removed for the 1node with cancer ? chemo which was a disaster in terms of tolerance allergic reactions and change of drugs then the rads to breast and axilla
my onc at follow up was very confident that this cancer was gone and that i was definitely above 50% for it to remain that way, then he also said it can recur TN is more likely to in 1st 3 years and that indeed if it did i have a lower rate of survival depending on site of recurrence (not breast) ? as its aggressive in nature!! Very mixed messages for me there!!! Needlessly to say i burst into tears saying thats what i don’t want to hear his reply was i think you need to go to Maggies for some support ? i already do, i am modifying my diet to a much healthier version of before i have the odd chippy tea, but no longer indulge in biscuits cakes and chocolate bars! Opting for homemade granola bars made with honey instead of sugar or honey biscuits and banana and honey loaf, i have cut down on red meats eat more fruit and veg, water instead of juice with ni fizzy drinks, switched bread to wholemeal and look forward to the odd treat of a meal out, aside from this nothing else i am going to start cbd oil, what really struck me re the dietary stuff is that the nutritionist at my local cancer centre has been diagnosed with bc im sure she knew all the theories and facts re food and cancer but it didn’t stop her getting it xx
Hope you all make the decisions which are right for you and your wellbeing i suppose by making some changes we are doing something xx
Chick i agree with you the medical terminology can scare the pants off you but as you say it doesn’t matter on type grade stage etc also my inc did tell me that aggressive cancers responses to chemo are excellent, so after my wobbly moment in onc app i decided to move forward with positivity and like i said making small changes to my diet to encourage a healthier lifestyle i forgot to mention in my last
Post i was eating rubbish and junk food all the time i have now lost some weight feel better for it but do still enjoy a treat
A little of what you fancy every now and then cant do any harm!!!
Thank you everyone for taking the time to reply, definitely given me some food for thought. I wish there were more follow up info courses on life after bc!
I’ve been training and just run my first ever 5K! Hope to continue running and get that weight down now!!!
Hope you are all doing well x