Depending on the location and stage of your endometrial cancer (EC), you may have a few different treatment options. Your doctor should be able to walk you through these different options, the side effects they can cause and the benefits of each approach so that you can make an informed decision about your care.
For many patients, the treatment plan they decide on with their doctor is the end of the story. For others, it’s just the beginning of long discussions with family and friends who don’t agree with the plan. If you find yourself in the later camp, these tips can help.
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It’s your body: Remember you have patient autonomy
After a cancer diagnosis, you may be met with a litany of well-meaning advice. This advice might even become overwhelming: It may feel that suddenly everyone around you is an EC expert.
Some might not be based on sound clinical evidence, and easy to throw away. For example, no number of juice cleanses or yoga classes can destroy a tumor. But other advice might be more reasonable, and harder to ignore.
If your cancer is advanced, you may be making difficult decisions about experimental treatments, or stopping treatment altogether. Understandably, your loved ones may have strong opinions about these choices.
Nevertheless, as the patient, you have autonomy to make the decisions you wish in regards to your treatment. No one can force you into decisions about what you should and should not do — not even your doctors. Ultimately, you get to make the choices that you are comfortable with, taking into account the benefits and risks involved.
Communicate clearly and honestly
Once you have made a treatment decision about your EC, you’ll likely tell your close family and friends about it. Unless your family and friends have personal experience dealing with EC, they are unlikely to be well-versed with this disease and the treatment options available.
Therefore, it’s important that you gently help them understand the disease, as well as how you came to your treatment decisions.
If you need help with the conversation, you can ask for help from a professional. A member of your care team can explain the specifics of your diagnosis and care during a family meeting, or a social worker can help navigate emotional conversations with your loved ones.
Read more about getting support: “How to ask for and accept help during cancer treatment”
Safeguard your emotional well-being
Dealing with cancer, including the treatments involved, is naturally a distressing experience. In our culture today, many associate cancer with death, even though prognosis is generally good when it’s diagnosed at an early stage. Nevertheless, the mere association can provoke strong negative feelings.
It’s important that you prioritize your emotional well-being during your cancer journey, no matter how long it is or what the likely outcomes are. If you find it difficult to find support, remember that there are always organizations that are dedicated to your well-being.
If helpful, you may always request some privacy to deal with the aftermath of your decisions.
It is important to stay positive. By having a positive mindset, the disease and treatment burden of EC can be somewhat alleviated. In cases when options are limited, this is the best thing that you can do for yourself.
