It cannot be cured, but you can live with it as actively as it was before the diagnosis, or even more intensely. And many years during which an effective drug for advanced breast cancer may appear, because it is mentioned in the campaign “Use your time for life!”, Organized by the “Żyjmy Zdrowo” Foundation and sponsored by Agata Kornhauser-Duda.
Although stage IV breast cancer, i.e. with metastases to distant organs, is not cured yet, women suffering from it may live for many years and be at least as active as before the diagnosis – argue doctors and the heroines of the educational campaign “Use time to live! ”. It was prepared especially for women with advanced breast cancer, which is much less discussed in the media than about breast cancer at an early stage of development, the organizers of the campaign from the “Żyjmy Zdrowo” Foundation emphasize in the press release. The wife of the President of the Republic of Poland, Agata Kornhauser-Duda, took the honorary patronage over it.
“Advanced breast cancer is a very serious disease, but that doesn’t mean you have to sit down and cry. At the moment, the life expectancy of women with recurrent breast cancer is several years, and medicine is still moving forward and giving new opportunities, so we do not know what will happen in the next five or 10 years “- argues Dr. Elżbieta Senkus – Konefka from the Department and Clinic of Oncology and Radiotherapy of the Medical University of Gdańsk.
“That is why I tell my patients not to mortify themselves, but to try to live as much as their disease allows them. Let them take care of themselves, let them not regret anything – they want to meet a grandson they have not seen for a long time, let them meet him, they want to travel, let them travel. The disease is in my head and I repeat it to my patients ”- adds a specialist in the field of clinical oncology and oncological radiotherapy.
Dr Senkus-Konefka appeared as a substantive expert in the documentary entitled “I Want to Live” directed by Athena Sawidis, which was produced as part of the campaign. Its aim is to show patients with advanced breast cancer that it is possible to live with this disease actively and that it is worth using every moment of life.
Its protagonists are four women: Małgorzata Bażant (50) from Sandomierz, Jolanta Werner (55) from Malbork, Beata Stempniewicz (48) from Opole and Jolanta Goińska (53) from the village of Romanowa near Poznań. Each of them has different jobs – they have different jobs, have different passions, but they all have one thing in common: they all have had breast cancer in the past and all of them recently found out about a relapse. At first, this news was shocking for each of them, it took away the will to live. But they all overcame sadness, breakdown, depression and decided to live in such a way as to make the most of the time they had left. They are active in family and professional life, they are socially active, they travel, meet friends, fulfill their dreams for which they did not find time before, they provide support to other sick people and their loved ones. Each of them considers themselves happy and fulfilled.
Breast cancer is the most common malignant neoplasm in women. According to the data of the National Cancer Registry, more than 17 patients are diagnosed with it every year in Poland. ladies, and over 5 thousand. patients with this cancer die. From 5 to 6 percent breast cancer cases are initially diagnosed in the advanced stage, and in 30-40% of cases. in patients diagnosed at an early stage, the disease recurs after some time and its distant metastases occur – to the lungs, liver, bones and brain. Research shows that women with advanced breast cancer can live an average of two to four years, but some live much longer.
In the last 10 years, tremendous progress has been made in the treatment of patients with this cancer. “In the fourth stage of the disease (disseminated breast cancer – PAP), five-year survival rates are now twice as long as a decade ago. This illustrates the progress in the treatment of this cancer “- says the national consultant in the field of clinical oncology, Prof. Maciej Krzakowski in an interview for the Foundation “Żyjmy Zdrowo”.
The specialist emphasizes that currently an equally important goal as extending the life of these patients is maintaining the proper quality of their lives, including by reducing or eliminating symptoms and ailments associated with the disease and by preparing personalized therapy that “will provide a woman with a life similar to or the same as before treatment.”
“First of all, no patient, in this case we are talking about women with advanced breast cancer, must not be excluded from normal life in society and family. When that happens, it’s a big mistake. When such women ask me how to live, I reply that they should try to live as they have lived so far ”- emphasizes prof. Krzakowski.
The organizers of the campaign “Use your time to live!” they planned, among others regular workshops for patients with advanced breast cancer and their relatives. Patients will be able to meet a psycho-oncologist, take part in calligraphy and photography classes, and learn how to take care of their well-being and appearance during illness.
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The campaign is supported by the Polish Society of Clinical Oncology, the Polish Coalition of Oncological Patients and the Oncological Education Program run by the Tam and Back Foundation. Its partners are numerous associations of cancer patients. The campaign is supported by an educational grant from Pfizer Polska.