Sign in

or Register now

MyBreastCancerNetwork.com

See all of our health sites at www.HealthCentral.com
Wednesday, November, 25, 2009
  • Font size

Failing As Usual: Double Mastectomies and "Choices" In Breast Cancer Treatment

Laura Zigman
Laura Zigman
Close
Author of Piece of Work

I grew up in Newton, Mass., and graduated from the University of...

Laura Zigman

Wednesday, February 06, 2008
View All of Laura Zigman's Posts

 

Cancer is the only disease, besides AIDS (and morbid obesity), where everything is your fault and where you can fail at everything from diagnosis to treatment. While I "succeeded" at being "pro-active" (pushy) about catching my breast cancer early by insisting on an MRI, some might think I "failed" at resisting the better-safe-than-sorry option.

 

The choices we're faced with are not black and white. I, for one, understood that the actual statistical difference between watching the right breast for a recurrence and removing it completely may not have been huge. But while it may not have been exactly a six-of-one- half-dozen-of-the-other kind of choice, it was close enough. The decision I made may not have been the "right" one by purely mathematical standards, but it was not an ill-informed or misguided decision, either. It was a valid choice.

 

Most women, like me, I think, understand this difference, and make their choices accordingly. Our options are less than perfect, and our decisions may be less than perfect, too. But most lesser-of-two-evils kinds of choices usually are. So let's not blame the chooser.

  • Font size
  • Bookmark
  • Thank you for your input
  • Save
  • RSS
  • Report Abuse

Ask a Question

Get answers from our experts and community members.

View all questions (3948) >