5 Tips for Coping with Fear of Breast Cancer Recurrence

Fear of breast cancer recurrence is common after treatment — but it doesn’t have to control your life.

After you’ve gone through breast cancer treatment and rung the bell at the end, coping with the fear of recurrence can feel overwhelming.

You may feel guilty, like you should feel more grateful for your health, but it’s natural to feel both gratitude and fear, said Dr. Gabriela Gutierrez, LMFT, clinical oncology therapist at Loma Linda University Cancer Center.

“Cancer is like an earthquake with many aftershocks,” she said. “Just because the big one is out of the way doesn’t mean the ripples are gone.”

Experiencing breast cancer is physical and mental, and it’s not as simple as snapping your fingers to go back to the way your life was before diagnosis. In fact, most people who’ve had breast cancer have some fear of recurrence.

But you’re not alone, and there are ways to cope.

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1. Normalize the fear

Fear is part of the journey, said Gutierrez. It’s natural to feel this way. In fact, fear means that you care about your life — that you do have hope for the life ahead of you.

And it’s possible you’re feeling the emotions you pushed to the side during treatment, said Lauren Chatalian, LMSW, a therapist at CancerCare.

“In the treatment phase, an individual is just thinking about survivorship,” she said. On the other side, thoughts of the ordeal you just went through and facing that again can feel like too much.

Now might be a good time to contact a therapist or social worker, especially if you didn’t talk with one while going through treatment. They can help you further normalize and process these feelings.

2. Ask for support

You don’t have to go through this alone. Your loved ones are likely also scared and may fear bringing it up.

“Finding ways to bond against fear together can make it more manageable rather than having individual battles against fear, which can promote isolation,” said Gutierrez.

But it can feel like an isolating experience, especially if you don’t have any other people who’ve experienced cancer in your life.

A 2023 research review showed that being part of a breast cancer support group can improve quality of life.

Creating connections with people with similar experiences — either in person or virtually — can help you feel understood. It may also strengthen your relationships with family and friends by alleviating some of the emotional burden they’re carrying from not knowing how to support you best.

If your loved ones are worrying that you’re overreacting, they should understand that “the survivor is sometimes operating from a lens of trauma,” said psycho-oncologist and breast cancer survivor Dr. Renee Exelbert. “And [you] may therefore see other more minor health issues as indicative of a recurrence.”

Share with them just how typical your fear of recurrence is.

3. Continue being proactive about medical care

It can be tempting to want to bury your head in the sand and never visit another doctor’s office again after a long battle with cancer. But keeping up with your doctors’ appointments, including any medical (or dental) visits you may have put to the side during treatment, is important.

As you likely already know, early detection is key.

Contact your doctor if you’re experiencing any of your original symptoms, or any new symptoms, including pain or physical problems that interfere with your quality of life.

Visiting your doctor after cancer treatment can bring back a flood of memories you may not be prepared for, said Susan Ash-Lee, LCSW, vice president of clinical services at Cancer Support Community.

Writing your questions in advance and bringing a family member or friend with you can be helpful.

4. Regain a sense of control over your body

Cancer can make you feel like your body is betraying you or like it’s not your own.

“An excellent way to regain a sense of control is through diet and exercise,” said Exelbert. “This allows the individual to be an active agent of change and in command of choices that can positively impact their health.”

Whether you had a breast surgery or not, your body is different now than it was before cancer, and activities that strengthen the mind-body connection, like yoga, can help you feel more grounded, Ash-Lee said. (Of course, always be sure to clear any physical activity with your doctor before beginning a new exercise program!)

Taking time to be mindful can also help you tune in to your bodily sensations, feeling like your body is your own again. To help calm your body and mind, you can try techniques like deep breathing, visualization exercises, and progressive muscle relaxation.

“Mindfulness is simply paying attention on purpose, in the present moment, without judgment,” Ash-Lee said. “Being mindful can improve our concentration, enhance our relationships, and help decrease our stress.”

5. Focus on enjoying your life

Sometimes, after treatment, you may feel stuck, like you don’t remember what life was like before diagnosis.

“Cancer was able to guide so much of your life during treatment. Now that it is out of your body, we don’t want to continue to give it the power to guide you even though it’s gone,” said Gutierrez. “That’s not the life you fought for.”

Facing cancer is one of the hardest things to go through — and you did it. Now, when you’re ready, you get to celebrate.

What’s on your bucket list? Now’s the time, if you have the energy, to do all the things you always said you’d do someday. Take your dream trip, pick up a new hobby, or just schedule time to catch up with the loved ones you didn’t get to see while you were going through treatment.

But know that it’s totally OK and understandable if you don’t feel like throwing a party after ringing the bell. Adjusting to life after breast cancer takes time, and you don’t need to pretend like everything is suddenly back to the way it was before.

Hear from Bezzy BC guide Monica Haro about the small changes she’s come to embrace in life after treatment: 10 New Normals I Don’t Hate in My Life After Breast Cancer.