Caregiver Resources
Your role as a breast cancer caregiver is challenging and important. A caregiver can be a family member, friend, co-worker, neighbor, and anyone else who takes care of someone with cancer.
If you are caring for a loved one with metastatic breast cancer, you are not alone. Excluding skin cancer, breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among US women. More than 1 in 4 cancers in women are breast cancer and approximately a third will have their cancer spread.
Guidance for caregivers
Women with metastatic breast cancer should continue to eat a healthy diet, get plenty of sleep, exercise, and do other activities they like. Encouraging someone with metastatic breast cancer to learn all they can about their illness is important. Just having someone there to talk to, such as a relative, friend, counselor, or support group, can be extremely helpful to someone battling metastatic breast cancer.
Here are some suggestions to help both you AND your loved one:
- Learn as much as you can about metastatic breast cancer, its treatment, and available support services
- Get connected with others and build a support system for you and your loved one
- Seek rest and do your best to carve out time for yourself to relax
- Recognize your "new normal" but remain involved with your community, friends, and family
- Learn to say “yes” when people offer to help in ways that are unexpected or worthwhile
- Set limits and learn to say “no” when you need to take a break or get some rest
- Stay healthy through good nutrition and establishing an exercise plan
- Find new ways to keep your stress levels down
Helpful links for caregivers
Cancer Support Community
http://www.cancersupportcommunity.org/
The largest provider of cancer support worldwide; this organization is composed of nearly 50 local affiliates, 12 affiliates in development, and over 100 satellite locations. They provide support, education, and hope to all people affected by cancer.
Well Spouse Association
http://www.wellspouse.org/
The Well Spouse Association advocates for and addresses the needs of spouses caring for a chronically ill or disabled wife, husband, or partner by offering peer-to-peer support and by educating healthcare professionals and the general public about the special challenges and unique roles spouses face.
Family Caregiver Alliance
http://www.caregiver.org/
The mission of Family Caregiver Alliance is to support families caring for loved ones with chronic, disabling conditions through information, education, services, research, and advocacy.
National Family Caregivers Association
http://www.nfcacares.org/
The National Family Caregivers Association educates, supports, empowers, and speaks up for the more than 50 million Americans who care for loved ones with a chronic illness.
National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship
http://www.canceradvocacy.org/
NCCS provides information and resources on cancer support, advocacy, and quality-of-life issues to cancer survivors and their loved ones.
The resources provided are for general information only and are not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Users of these resources should not rely exclusively on the information provided, as information about health care changes constantly, and all specific medical questions should be discussed with your own doctor.
ABRAXANE is a prescription medicine for breast cancer that has spread to other parts of the body. ABRAXANE is used after treatment with combination chemotherapy has stopped working, including anthracyclines, if appropriate, or when the cancer has come back within 6 months of treatment after surgery.
Important Safety Information About ABRAXANE®
WARNING: ABRAXANE for Injectable Suspension (paclitaxel protein-bound particles for injectable suspension) should be given only by a doctor who is experienced in giving chemotherapy. That way, if any problems come up during treatment, your doctor will be able to manage them.
If you have a low white blood cell count (neutropenia), you should not take ABRAXANE, since you may be more likely to get a serious infection. While taking ABRAXANE, you must get regular blood tests to check for any problems that could develop.
ABRAXANE contains albumin, a substance found in human blood. Albumin can affect the way other drugs work.
- ABRAXANE has not been studied in people with kidney problems
- If you are pregnant, or become pregnant, ABRAXANE can cause harm to your unborn baby. You should avoid becoming pregnant while taking ABRAXANE
- Men should not father a child while being treated with ABRAXANE
- If you have a very low white blood cell count, you should not take ABRAXANE. If your white blood cell count goes down while taking ABRAXANE, you should stop taking it until your white blood cell count returns to normal. If your white blood cell count drops very low, your doctor will lower your dose of ABRAXANE
- It is not known whether ABRAXANE interacts with other drugs, so be sure to tell your doctor about any medicines you are taking
- People treated with ABRAXANE often have a side effect called sensory neuropathy, a numbness, tingling, or burning in the hands, feet, and ankles. If you get mild sensory neuropathy, you will probably not have to lower your dose of ABRAXANE. If sensory neuropathy becomes severe, you may have to stop taking ABRAXANE until it improves, and then continue treatment at a lower dose
- Treatment with ABRAXANE can make liver problems worse. If you have liver problems, your starting dose of ABRAXANE should be lowered
- Treatment with ABRAXANE can cause irritation where the medicine is injected (injection site reactions). When taking ABRAXANE, you should be monitored by your doctor or nurse to make sure no problems occur at the injection site
- Since it is not known if ABRAXANE passes into human milk, you should stop nursing if you are taking ABRAXANE
- You should not drive a car when you are being treated with ABRAXANE. Side effects such as feeling very tired (fatigue), having no energy (lethargy), or feeling sick (malaise) can affect your ability to drive or use machinery
- In a clinical trial, severe heart and blood vessel side effects occurred in approximately 3% of women taking ABRAXANE. Side effects included chest pain, heart attack, fluid under the skin, blood clots in the veins or lungs, and high blood pressure. Stroke and heart failure were rare
- The most important side effects during treatment with ABRAXANE included hair loss, low white blood cell count, sensory neuropathy, weakness, muscle or joint pain, low red blood cell count (anemia), nausea, diarrhea, infection, vomiting, and sores in the mouth or on the lips (mucositis)
- Other side effects included vision problems, kidney problems, fluid retention, liver problems, and allergic reactions, and a decrease in blood clotting cells (platelets). Dehydration and fever were common
Please see full Prescribing Information, including Boxed WARNINGS, CONTRAINDICATIONS, WARNINGS AND PRECAUTIONS, and ADVERSE REACTIONS.