I have been taking hormone blockers (post-breast cancer) for a year now. They notoriously cause osteoporosis, so I had my bone density assessed just before starting a year ago, and then again this morning. I had been expecting to have to make a big(-ish) decision between osteoporosis on the one hand and an elevated risk of cancer recurrence on the other, but my bone density is exactly the same as it was a year ago.

That even cheered up the radiologist visibly. I guess they see a lot of misery in that profession.

Again, I feel lucky that (in addition to obviously having good bones 😊) I had made it to nearly 70 before diagnosis, and my heart goes out to the unfortunately increasing number of younger, and, tragically, very young, women diagnosed with breast cancer and who have to embark on a lifetime of what many call the evil, turbo-ageing pills with a hundred side effects, none of which – I’m sure – are part of anybody’s master plan but definitely not if you are between 20 and, say, 45 or 50.

While their surroundings consider them cured of cancer and expect them to proceed as if nothing ever happened, they have to take double the dosis that I do, of a medication which nobody talks about, presumably due to the stigma attached to being forced into menopause, and for many with symptoms a hundred times worse, much too early. Zum heulen, as they say.

The facts that nobody talks about 1) the increasing number of very young women diagnosed with breast cancer, nor 2) the hormone blockers they have to take and which in many cases destroy their overall health not to mention ruin their other plans for the future is probably going to be foremost on my mind with Breast Cancer Awareness Month coming up. Not that I have the slightest idea what else to do about it.