Side Effects
Side effects are problems that happen when your breast cancer treatment affects healthy tissues or organs. There are many different types of side effects, and whether they occur depends on a variety of factors. Some can be short-term, while others last longer. Many side effects are connected to specific medicines, regiments or therapies.
For many people, side effects are among the most distressing parts of breast cancer treatment. But today there are many ways to prevent and manage side effects. Talking openly with your providers can help you. In this section, we discuss different side effects, when and how likely they are to occur and the treatments connected to them. You will also learn ways to prevent side effects, if possible, and methods to manage or treat them. We also give you tips to describe side effects, as well as ways to start a conversation with your providers.
Learn more in this section about:
- Bone Loss
- Bone Pain
- Chemobrain
- Depression
and Anxiety
- Fear of Recurrence
- Hair Loss
- Hand-Foot Syndrome
- Heart Health
- Insomnia
and Fatigue
- Lymphedema
- Menopausal Symptoms
- Mouth Sores
- Nail and Skin Changes
- Nausea
and Vomiting
- Neuropathy
- Neutropenia
- Secondary Cancers
- Pain
- Sexual Side Effects
- Learn
- The Basics
- Types of Breast Cancer
- DCIS and LCIS
- Hormone Receptor-Positive
- HER2-Positive
- Triple-Negative
- Metastatic
- How Breast Cancer Metastasizes
- What Makes Metastatic Breast Cancer Different
- Feelings of Loss
- Bone Metastases
- Brain Metastases
- Liver Metastases
- Lung Metastases
- Diagnosis and Testing
- Treatments and Research
- Side Effects
- Bone Health and MBC
- Bone Pain and MBC
- Chemobrain
- Depression and Anxiety and MBC
- Hair Loss and MBC
- Hand-Foot Syndrome and MBC
- Heart Health and MBC
- Insomnia and Fatigue and MBC
- Menopausal Symptoms and MBC
- Mouth Sores and MBC
- Nail and Skin Changes and MBC
- Nausea and Vomiting and MBC
- Neuropathy and MBC
- Neutropenia and MBC
- Pain and MBC
- Sexual Side Effects
- Living With Metastatic Breast Cancer
- Inflammatory
- Lobular
- Diagnosis and Testing
- Treatments and Research
- Getting a Second Opinion
- Clinical Trials
- Surgery
- Chemotherapy
- Radiation Therapy
- Immunotherapy
- Targeted Therapy
- Hormonal Therapy
- Biosimilars
- Breast Reconstruction
- Complementary Therapy
- Yoga and Breast Cancer
- Side Effects
- Anemia
- Why Fear of Recurrence Happens
- Common Fear of Recurrence Triggers
- Managing Your Fear of Recurrence
- Getting Support for Fears of Recurrence
- Bone Loss
- Bone Pain
- Chemobrain
- Depression and Anxiety
- Diarrhea
- Fear of Recurrence
- Hair Loss
- Hand-Foot Syndrome
- Heart Health
- High Cholesterol
- Insomnia and Fatigue
- Lymphedema
- Menopausal Symptoms
- Mouth Sores
- Nail and Skin Changes
- Nausea and Vomiting
- Neuropathy
- Neutropenia
- Pain
- Secondary Cancers
- Sexual Side Effects
- Weight Gain
- Weight Loss
- Living With Breast Cancer
- Body Image
- Bone Health Basics
- Treatments and Your Bone Health
- Bone Health Tests
- Improving Bone Health
- Medicines To Protect Bones
- Diet, Nutrition and Exercise
- Making Meals Healthy
- Tips for Healthy Eating
- Emotional Health
- Fear of Recurrence
- Fertility and Breast Cancer
- Genetics and Family Risk
- Job and Financial Concerns
- Breast Cancer and the Workplace
- Telling Employers and Coworkers About Your Diagnosis
- Work Accommodations and Disability Benefits
- Offsetting the “Hidden Costs” of Breast Cancer
- Getting Organized for Health Insurance
- Private, State and Federal Insurance
- Navigating Your Heatlh Insurance
- Dealing With a Claim Denial
- Other Ways to Get Insurance
- Financial Planning
- What is the ACA?
- Sex and Intimacy
- Birth Control and Breast Cancer
- Maintaining Sexual Life
- If You Feel Pain During Sex
- Sexual Side Effects
- Body Image and Sexuality
- Improving Sexual Health With Medical Approaches
- Improving Sexual Health With Self Care
- Talking With Your Partner About Sex and Intimacy
- Talking With Your Healthcare Team About Sex and Intimacy
- Signs of Recurrence
- Learning from Others
- Additional Resources
- Get Support
- How You Can Help
- News & Opinion