Often used for HR-positive mBC
Hormone therapy
Slows or stops hormones from helping cancer cells grow. It may be paired with a targeted medicine.
TREATMENT & DECISIONS
Know your options.
Keep your priorities in the room.
There may be more than one reasonable treatment path. Understanding the choices can help you ask questions, weigh tradeoffs, and make decisions with your care team.
Explore treatment approachesTHERE IS NO ONE-SIZE-FITS-ALL PLAN
Your care plan is built from more than one test.
Your subtype and biomarkers help narrow the choices. Your health, treatment history, symptoms, and daily life help shape which choice may fit best.
Your subtypeBiomarker resultsWhere cancer has spreadPast treatmentsOther health conditionsYour goals and concerns
Treatment can change over time. A change does not mean you failed. It may mean the cancer changed, a medicine stopped helping, side effects became too much, or a new option became available.
COMMON TREATMENT APPROACHES
Different tools can do different jobs.
Your oncologist may recommend one medicine, a combination, or a sequence of treatments. Ask why an approach is being recommended for your specific cancer.
Matches a feature of the cancer
Targeted therapy
Targets a protein or gene change that helps the cancer grow, such as HER2, PIK3CA, or another biomarker.
Can work across different subtypes
Chemotherapy
Uses medicine to damage or destroy fast-growing cancer cells. The schedule and side effects depend on the drug.
An option for some tumors
Immunotherapy
Helps the immune system better recognize and attack cancer cells. Biomarker testing may help show whether it is a match.
A targeted way to deliver medicine
Antibody-drug conjugates
Connects an antibody to a cancer-killing drug so treatment can be carried toward cells with a certain marker.
Used for a specific area or symptom
Local treatments
Radiation or surgery may sometimes treat one area, protect a bone, ease symptoms, or prevent a problem.
HOW TREATMENT MAY FIT INTO YOUR LIFE
The medicine matters.
So does the routine.
Two treatments may have different demands even when both can help. Ask what the schedule would look like in real life.
Pills taken at home
Ask how often to take them, what to do after a missed dose, how they interact with other medicines, and where they will be delivered.
Infusions or injections
Ask how often you will come in, how long each visit takes, whether you need lab work first, and if you will need someone to drive.
Monitoring between visits
Ask which symptoms need a same-day call, who to contact after hours, and how often scans or blood tests will check your response.
BEFORE YOUR APPOINTMENT
Prepare for the conversation—not a test.
You do not need perfect notes or the “right” medical words. A short list can help you leave with the answers you need.
- 1Choose your top three questions.
Start with what is keeping you up at night or affecting daily life most.
- 2Bring an updated medicine list.
Include prescriptions, over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and supplements.
- 3Write down new or changing symptoms.
Note when they started, how often they happen, and what makes them better or worse.
- 4Invite support if you want it.
A trusted person can listen, take notes, or help you remember what you wanted to ask.
Try this: Ask, “Can you explain that in another way?” or “Can you write down the name of that test or treatment?”
SHARED DECISION-MAKING
The medical facts and your life belong in the same decision.
Shared decision-making means you and your care team work together. Your clinician brings medical knowledge. You bring expertise about your body, responsibilities, values, and life.
What might this treatment help me gain?
Ask about the goal, how likely it is to help, and how your team will know whether it is working.
What might this treatment ask of me?
Consider side effects, time, travel, cost, caregiving, work, and the effect on other health conditions.
How does this choice fit what matters to me?
Name what you want to protect: time at home, energy, comfort, independence, a milestone, work, faith, or family roles.
WHAT MATTERS TO YOU?
There is more than one way to define a good treatment plan.
Complete one or two sentences before your next visit. Your answers can help your team understand the person behind the chart.
“The part of my daily life I most want to protect is ________________.”
“The side effect I am most worried about is ________________.”
“I would consider more treatment time if ________________.”
“I need more information before I can decide about ________________.”
QUESTIONS TO TAKE WITH YOU
Make room for the answers you need.
- 01What is the goal of this treatment?
- 02Why do you recommend it for my subtype and biomarkers?
- 03What other options do I have?
- 04What side effects should I expect—and which are urgent?
- 05How will this affect my other medicines or conditions?
- 06How much time will treatment and monitoring take?
- 07Who can help me with cost, transportation, or caregiving?
- 08Is a clinical trial an option now?
This page uses patient information from the National Cancer Institute and American Cancer Society. It is for education and does not replace advice from your oncology team.