If you have’t read my breast cancer story yet, let me catch you up. Earlier this year (2025) I was diagnosed with stage 1a triple positive invasive ductal carcinoma (breast cancer) after my first ever screening mammogram at 40 years old. It was shocking, to say the least.
Now that I’m half a year into the journey, I’ve kept a list of things that helped me along the way through surgery and chemotherapy (the stages I’ve been through so far), and I want to share it with you in case you find anything helpful on your own journey. Perhaps someone you know was recently diagnosed with breast cancer, or maybe you yourself are going through it. Whatever the case, I want to help! So here is a list of my favorite things, must-haves, and other random bits to get you through it.
(Disclaimer: I may earn a very small amount of money from some of the links below, but I only recommend items that I actually used during treatment and loved!)
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Breast Surgery Must-Haves (lumpectomy)
Soft bras for post-lumpectomy. The hospital will likely send you home with one compression bra, but you’ll want multiples to wear in the days and weeks post-surgery. I highly suggest getting front closure bras since they’re easier to get on and you don’t have to lift your arms overhead (which you might not want to do for the first few days after surgery). I have this SHEFIT bra that fits really well, but for a cheaper option, I also got this 3 pack of soft front-zip bras. I still wear both of these!
Seatbelt port pad. If you’re getting a port for chemo, you may want a pad like this that goes over your seatbelt so that there’s extra padding on your fresh port area on your chest. I wore one over my seatbelt for the first few weeks after surgery and it was definitely helpful!
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Chemotherapy Must-Haves
Water bottle with phone stand. They say to stay super hydrated during chemotherapy, so this large water bottle is sure to keep you filled with water if you drink it all day! (Plus they have fun colors.) A friend gifted this to me and the bonus that really sold me is the phone holder on top (the notches in the handle) because I’ve used it multiple times to watch a show on my phone during chemotherapy infusions. It keeps the phone at a good height for viewing!
Cold therapy gloves and socks. This was one of the non-negotiables for me because my oncologist said that she’s seen ~80% reduction in incidence of peripheral neuropathy with people using cold therapy on their hands and feet during chemotherapy. Taxol, the drug that I started with, is particularly notorious for neuropathy, so I made sure to wear these cold gloves and socks 10 minutes before my infusion, during the whole infusion, and 30 minutes afterwards. You may want to get some replacement cold packs so you can change them out every 20-30 minutes.
Be Well multi-access hoodie. I have the multi-access hoodie in lavender because I have a chest port that they need to access, but if you’re going with peripheral IVs only, you can try the IV access hoodie. There are lots of options and colors! I’ve worn this the most of anything I own because it’s so cozy, warm, and soft, plus the hood is nice because my head gets so cold without hair. The infusion center where I go is freezing, so that combined with the cold therapy on my hands and feet has me chilly most of the time. This hoodie has been clutch! You can see photos of me wearing it in this blog post.
3M tegaderm and Emla cream for port access. If you have a chest port, they’ll be accessing it with a large needle. A lot of doctors prescribe Emla cream as a numbing agent to put topically on your port site an hour before your infusion so you don’t have to feel the needle going in. I put a dime to nickel size amount on my port area and cover it with these small Tegaderm coverings so it doesn’t get on my clothes. Feel free to ask your oncologist for a prescription if you want to try it!
EmeTerm band for nausea. I kid you not – this EmeTerm band has cured all kinds of nausea for me! It’s literally changed my life in so many ways! I get incredibly car sick along with all kinds of other nausea, and this electronic stimulator cures my nausea within a few minutes of putting it on. It’s incredible! It would make a super thoughtful gift for anyone going through chemotherapy, morning sickness, or any other kind of nausea.
Hoka slides/sandals. I LOVE these Hoka slides and wore them to many infusion appointments. The medical assistants make you take your shoes off to weigh you before each infusion, and then I always had to take my shoes off in the infusion chair to do cold therapy on my feet, so it was helpful to have something easy to slip off and on. Plus they’re big enough that I could put fuzzy socks on with them after my cold therapy was finished.
Nuderma skin therapy wand. Everyone tells you about the potential nausea and fatigue from chemotherapy, but no one warned me about the terrible acne! Literally insane! I had to shave my head to be able to deal with the crazy acne on my scalp and I’ll probably have scars from it forever. Besides Clindamycin lotion that was prescribed by my oncologist, this Nuderma skin therapy wand is the only other thing that helps. Trust me, take a peek at this and read all about it. I’ve been using it for years and it actually works for anti-aging as well. A great investment!
Head wraps and colorful wigs. I’ve enjoyed infusing a little fun into chemotherapy and hair loss by using colorful scarves and wigs. I was fortunate enough to go to Cancer CAREpoint in San Jose, California for a free wig and fitting (it looks a lot like my natural hair), so make sure to check around your area to see if there are any organizations offering this. I also went to Alameda Wigs for some cheaper colorful wig options just for fun! I’ve gotten the most compliments on those! I’ve also enjoyed finding colorful scarves at vintage and second hand stores. You can get them quite cheap! Read My Breast Cancer Story blog post to see some photos of my favorite colorful wigs and scarves in action.
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Other Things That Helped During Breast Cancer Treatment
Therapy. The very first thing I did when I got my cancer diagnosis was find a therapist. I was in crisis mode and had a lot of anxiety, and she helped me to work through everything. As a breast cancer survivor herself, it felt like she fully understood what I was going through. I still see her every 2 weeks. I’ve also signed up for other support groups like the UCSF young women’s group (I’m getting most of my treatment at UCSF) and have done some projects within the UCSF Art for Recovery umbrella, like the Firefly Project, where I’ve been writing to medical students about what it’s like to deal with a life-altering illness.
BAYS (Bay Area Young Survivors). BAYS is the first group that I joined the same day that I received my diagnosis. I reached out to a past client of mine that was going through breast cancer and she highly recommended the group. They have a Slack channel filled with useful information, as well as in-person events and meetups where I met my cancer twin and good friend through this whole process.
Thistle meal delivery. My husband and I started using Thistle for healthy meal delivery earlier this year, so we were actually all set when I got my cancer diagnosis. We get super fresh, healthy, and delicious meals (breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks) delivered twice a week so there’s always something ready for us and we don’t have to think about meal time during these crazy months. You can use my discount code here for $120 off!
Asking for what you need/want. People are going to say, “Let me know what you need!” or “Let me know how I can help!” a lot. I mean…a LOT. So if you can take some time to sit with your feelings and consider what it is you really need and want during this time, it’ll benefit everyone! Be direct and tell them exactly what you want/need. You can do that through group email updates as well (see below).
Group email updates. From the very start, I made a group email for family and friends who wanted to stay updated, and I sent out emails once every few weeks (or as often as I had new information). That way I didn’t have to field so many calls and texts about the same thing and I didn’t feel like I was repeating myself all the time. Plus I think people found it helpful for them to know what was going on and how I was processing things.
Leaning into creativity. For me that looked like booking photoshoots of myself (see some here), learning new things like crochet and hand embroidery, and leaning into other hobbies like watercolor painting, journaling, and reading. However you process best; do what works for you. But also consider trying something new and exploring your creativity in a way you’ve never done before. Cancer is a crazy ride; you may process it differently than you imagine.
Treating exercise like a job. You’ll hear a lot of people say that exercise (in any form) is so important when going through cancer treatment (particularly chemotherapy and radiation). So I took that to heart and treated exercise like it was my job. I put it on my schedule and made sure to show up and do the work. Yes, I scaled it back a bit (jogging instead of running) and listened to how I felt that day. But I made it a priority and kept showing up. Whether it’s making a date with a friend to walk around the block a few times, or scheduling Orange Theory classes like I did, you’ll thank yourself for keeping up with your exercise and happy hormones.
Taking time off of work or reducing hours. This is a super personal one. I’ve met a lot of people this year who have/had cancer and everyone seems to feel different about this one thing – work. Whether you think that keeping your regular work schedule will be most helpful to you, or if you want to stop working completely during your treatment, each thought is valid. Some people need the time away or a slower schedule like I did, whereas others thrive when diving head first into work. All I can say is that it felt like cancer was my full time job for a while with all the appointments, scheduling, driving to and from, preparing for treatments, etc. If you have the ability to do so, I highly recommend pulling back a little bit to give yourself space for all the cancer admin and for your own processing.
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Well, there you have it! So many of my favorite resources, products, and other things that have helped me in this cancer journey. I hope you or someone you know finds this list helpful as well! We’re all in it together. 💛
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