Recovering from Breast Cancer

Being diagnosed with breast cancer can throw your life out of balance. Emotions are affected, physical health deteriorates, and you may even find handling relationships more difficult. You day-to-day life is disrupted and you find yourself spending more time meeting your physicians than doing things you love. One wonders how long the treatment cycle of breast cycle go on for? Individual therapies like mastectomy, radiation therapy for cancer can take their own time for recovery depending on the diagnosis and stage of cancer.

Amount of time and duration for recovery depends on the surgery one needs to undergo. Here are some popular methods of breast cancer treatment and surgery options and their usual recovery times:

• Lumpectomy

Recovery time: 1-2 weeks

This is an outpatient procedure with a relatively short check out time. Some patients leave within the day. However, there are surgical drains that would be plugged in so take it easy, don’t rush to work. If lymph nodes are ones that were removed during the surgery, you need to a longer break, over a week, to ensure that your body gets ample rest and time to recover. Avoid any heavy lifting work or physical chores requiring you to run around or bend down too often. Relaxation is the key. 

• Mastectomy 

Recovery time: 1- 4 weeks

A common procedure involving removal of breast tissues, this procedure would need you to be in hospital for at least a couple of days after surgery. Multiple surgical drains are implemented, lasting for a week, up to 3 weeks. They are eventually taken off once the procedure is completed. Any incisions usually heal within a month.  Here as well, one should take enough rest physically and emotionally before stepping out to take on the world. 

• Breast reconstruction

A way to reconstruct post mastectomy, breast reconstruction can be done with implants as well as a free flap transplant that sometimes takes more than two to three appointments at the doctor. This may get further delayed if you have to undergo chemotherapy.  Therefore, recovery for the same varies. 

• Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy to treat breast cancer is heavily dependent at the severity of your cancer. Usually one session of chemotherapy is given every 2 weeks, the treatment lasting 4 cycles. So this goes on for at least 8 weeks or 2 months. Overall, recovery and the complete procedure can easily take 4-6 months. You will be required to meet your physician regularly and have your blood drawn – this will all depend on the number of sessions recommended depending on the intensity of your prescribed chemotherapy.