Chemo or Alternative Medicine?

Before I write further, let me just say that this entry contains my personal beliefs about Alternative Medicine as a means to address cancer, any type of cancer. These thoughts didn't come from books or online articles. I respect others and the choices they make as far as treatments are concerned. 

There's been a lot of talk about Alternative Medicine being the friendlier option. It's always been compared to chemotherapy. If you look at these two options, even without the benefit of in-depth research, the former will always emerge as the easier choice. Easier in terms of what? 

Side effects

Economics, maybe

But what really is the bottom line when you find out you have cancer? 

Kicking it and doing what you can to keep it from coming back. 

So this is how I look at it: 

If I want to get rid of a nasty cold stat, I would take a pill and not just sleep it off.

If I want to recover from the flu, I'd swallow paracetamol every 4 hrs. 

If I want to address dysmenorrhea pain, I'd take Flanax instead of use a hot water bag. 

Cancer is not something you can joke around with. If you know you have it, you don't waste time getting rid of it. To me, choosing to go with Alternative Medicine for my breast cancer would be wasting precious time. BUT, there are factors to consider. In my case : age. I'm 44 years old. The younger you are, the more active your cancer cells are. The older you get, the slower they move around. Get the picture? The form of treatment I choose should be able to catch up with them. I don't think Alternative Medicine can achieve this. If a person in his/her 60's or 70's says alternative medicine is what works best for them, I'll believe them. Chemo does take a huge toll on one's physical being.

Not to say that I never had any second thoughts about chemotherapy. There have been many instances, prior to the start of treatments, when I questioned my own decision. But at the end of the day, I consoled myself with the fact that I'm not a doctor and my doctor knows best. This is what she recommends and I'm not in a position to tell her that she's wrong. Of course, that's me. 

Chemo is not really my friend. I've had a love-hate relationship with it from the start. It is, by far, the only thing that has made me go into panic attacks. I've never ever taken a Valium before. But thanks to chemo, I can now say I have. 

I talked about chemo with both my Breast Surgeon and my Onco even before my first cycle started. Thanks to them, I was convinced that this was the option I should go with. My main goal is to live long enough to see my children go off into the world on their own. If I can live way longer than that minus an illness, then that would be a really pretty bonus. Chemo is the tougher protocol, but I know I'll have more peace of mind after I'm done.