Living With Osteoarthritis and Metastatic Breast Cancer

Living with metastatic breast cancer in my bones is a challenge. It's hard on its own, but what happens when you also have another bone or joint disease in addition to metastatic breast cancer? It can all be overwhelming to deal with.

Conditions that weaken joints and bones

I developed osteoarthritis before I was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer in my bones. Osteoarthritis is a degenerative disease that worsens over time. It occurs when the cartilage that cushions the ends of the bones wears down.¹

As we age, people may develop bone diseases like osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and osteoporosis. You already have cancer in your bones, so receiving an additional diagnosis related to the bones can be challenging to deal with. Other common conditions that affect the bone are:^2,3

• Osteoporosis: a disease that weakens the bones. It occurs when the creation of new bone doesn't keep up with the loss of old bone.
• Rheumatoid arthritis: an autoimmune disorder that occurs when the immune system mistakenly attacks the body's tissues.

These are just a few conditions that can affect your joints or bones. When you have metastatic breast cancer in your bones, progression or symptoms can come on rapidly, and even some of the medicines that you take can lead to weakened bone health.⁴

Osteoarthritis and pain management

For me, the worst part of having cancer in my bones and osteoarthritis is the pain in my hip and my SI joint. I'm 4 years from my initial diagnosis, but my symptoms have been getting worse. The pain can be unbearable some days. There's no cure for it, so there's nothing you can do except for pain management, and I do not like taking pain medication.

Steroid shots

I talked to my primary doctor, who advised me to see a pain management doctor. The pain management doctor advised me to start with steroid shots in the pain areas to see if that'll help. I was super nervous, but actually, the procedure was pretty easy. Some people get relief for weeks or months after the procedure. Unfortunately for me, it was only a few days of pain relief.

Ablation

After the procedure, the doctor suggested we take some scans and maybe talk about doing an ablation. An ablation is a medical procedure that destroys or removes tissue or a body part causing pain. In my case, the doctor believed a cancerous tumor was the cause. I am stable and have no active cancer at this moment, but it can still help.

Medications or surgeries

Sometimes, if the disease is bad enough, you might need a hip replacement, knee replacement, or shoulder replacement. That is a scary thought when you already have cancer and are dealing with a lot.

My doctor suggested that I receive an injection called Xgeva^®. It is a bone-targeting medicine used to prevent serious bone problems. Having cancer in your bones makes you more susceptible to breaks, and having arthritis on top of that makes it more dangerous.

Other pain remedies

Because osteoarthritis leads to inflammation, I was also advised to follow an anti-inflammatory diet, which I already follow anyway.

As far as coping with the pain in other ways, ice is best for tackling the inflammation. I rest often, but I also ensure that I move a bit, whether it's walking or light exercise. I know it's hard to say keep moving when you're in pain, but that's the best advice I can share.  I hope my experience with this helps you a little bit.

I'm only familiar with osteoarthritis because that's what I have, so that's the only one that I can talk about because I know it well. There are groups online for all kinds of arthritis support. You have to search, and I guarantee there is a group that can be very good at giving advice and leading you in the right direction. Of course, you should discuss any new treatments or remedies with your doctor.

If you have arthritis or any bone disease on top of your metastatic breast cancer, what helps you deal with pain and other issues that come along with it?