Can women with breast cancer breastfeed?
Any chronic illness that occurs during or after pregnancy can condition a normal breastfeeding practice . And one of the big questions that occurs around this issue is to know what happens with the breast cancer and breastfeeding.
You can breastfeed with breast cancer
You can have breast cancer and breastfeed the
baby , but there are several aspects that should be considered since everything depends on each situation. When a mastectomy is done (removal of the breast) there is no milk production, but if a healthy breast is preserved, the baby can be breastfed perfectly.
In pregnancy and lactation, breast cancer is treated in the same way as in other periods, but during pregnancy the use of radiotherapy is not recommended, the treatment will vary depending on the month of gestation.
If the cancer is detected during breast-feeding and a treatment of surgery, chemotherapy or radiotherapy should be done, breast-feeding has to be interrupted. On the other hand, it is usually normal that during the lactation period milk production is lower due to the body's fight against the disease.
When not to breastfeed and when to do it
If the cancer has been detected before the baby is born or chemotherapy or tamoxifen is being treated, you should not breastfeed. On the other hand, if a woman has had breast cancer and there is no evidence that there may be traces of the disease, she could breastfeed her baby .
It is important to know that the cancer cells are not transmitted to the baby when it is being breastfed. In addition, having gone through a breast cancer does not pose any risk to the baby, and breastfeeding is not a reason for the disease to resurface.
If you are found to have breast cancer while you are breastfeeding, you should know that postponing surgery or possible treatment for continuing breastfeeding could be a great risk to your life. Remember: every situation is unique, but having had or having breast cancer is not a reason not to breastfeed.
“Making the decision to have a baby is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body.”
– Elizabeth Stone