‘It’ll be great if others don’t have to go through the effects of these drugs’
She has overcome the disease in the past year but the effects of cancer drugs have been one of the worst aspects of her illness.
The RCSI’s findings, which are expected to come into operation in the next year or two, could mean reducing the level of drugs required for women like Leah who respond well to treatment.
A lump in her left breast that grew to the size of a golf ball in just over a week was the start of Leah’s battle with breast cancer last August.
By the end of October, she had been through chemotherapy sessions and surgery to remove her breast and lymph nodes under her armpit, and she finished seven weeks of daily radiotherapy treatment in the past month.
The 29-year-old also learned this month she has responded well enough for reconstructive surgery next October, almost six months earlier than most patients after radiotherapy.
But despite all this success, one of the most traumatic elements for Leah has been her regime of drug treatments, including tamoxifen tablets she takes every day and that she must use for the next five years.
“It induces the onset of early menopause symptoms by controlling the release of oestrogen hormones which breast make cancer cells grow. But it brings on terrible mood swings, it makes me very emotional, and I get night sweats as well,” said Leah at her home in Santry.
But the research carried out at the RCSI could mean that future breast cancer patients might not have to receive such intensive drug treatments, as a simple blood test could show a more moderate regime will work for patients like Leah. “It’ll definitely be a great thing if this means other people don’t have to go through the effects of these drugs, they’ve really been the worst things,” Leah said.
She had only recently returned from a year in Australia when she was diagnosed and, she said, the loss of her hair during chemotherapy was just as devastating, if not worse, than losing a breast.
But with better news on the horizon thanks to her planned breast reconstruction, she hopes to return to her postponed plans to open a Montessori school next year.
“I’ve always tried to keep a positive attitude and I think that has helped enormously with the success of all my treatment,” said 29-year-old Leah.
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