Here's what might be a typical train of thought for someone surviving cancer. That someone, in this case, is me.

I have been getting sicker and sicker for the past three days. Sore throat, sore ears, and a heavy head made me think at first it was some sort of sinus issue. Add a cough, a rumbling and painful chest, sore gums, chills and sweats, and a fever roaring past 102.8 and the worries start rolling in. I feel like I did twice before, just before I was admitted to the hospital with dipping white blood counts.

The worst of it hit Friday night and since I just couldn't make myself sit in the ER for hours on end, I overstepped my boundaries, tracked down my hospital's on-call oncologist, and listed off my symptoms. Since my treatment for breast cancer concluded one year ago, the doctor wasn't worried. He called it an infection and called me in a prescription. In a few days, when my course of antibiotics run out, I should be fine.

Hot flashes can be a lingering side effect for many breast cancer survivors. The hot flashes occur when changes in hormone levels interfere with the body's ability to regulate its temperature.

Hot flashes can affect younger women treated with chemotherapy (which can shut down their ovaries), and also is one of the main side effects of the commonly prescribed hormone therapies, such as tamoxifen or an aromatase inhibitor such as Arimidex.

Hormone replacement therapy can be used to control hot flashes, but breast cancer survivors are recommended not use them because of concerns the hormones may increase the risk of their breast cancer returning.

An article published in the Annals of Oncology reported on a German study that was conducted to compare Effexor and clonidine therapy. Effexor is an antidepressant and clonidine is a drug used to treat high blood pressure.

The researchers concluded that Effexor significantly reduces the frequency of hot flashes compared with Catapres (clonidine) among patients with breast cancer who suffer from at least two hot flashes a day.

There are other anti-depressive agents that also reduce the amount of hot flashes throughout the day. Talk to your doctor to see if any of these drugs can give you some relief.

Breast cancer statistics for 2003 are in, and researchers have announced that the number of breast cancer cases dropped by an impressive seven percent, with the greatest drop occurring in women between ages 50-69 diagnosed with estrogen receptor positive (ER-positive) breast cancer.

The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center researchers attribute this good news to the fact that in the same time frame, millions of women stopped taking hormone replacement therapy (HRT) over concerns that HRT led to an increased risk for breast cancer.

If the statistics hold for upcoming years, HRT will have proven a greater causative effect leading to breast cancer than originally believed.

"Incidence of breast cancer had been increasing in the 20 or so years prior to July 2002, and this increase was over and above the known role of screening mammography," stated Donald Berry, Ph.D. "HRT had been proposed as a possible factor, although the magnitude of any HRT effect was not known. Now the possibility that the effect is much greater than originally thought all along is plausible, and that is a remarkable finding."

While the researchers best guesstimate is that HRT might be the contributing factor to the drop in ER-positive breast cancer cases for 2003, they cannot be 100 percent certain at this point. We will need to wait and see what the years 2004 and 2005 tell us about any continuing declines in breast cancer cases, and learn what other, if any, contributing factors are responsible for the decline.

Previous posts we have done regarding HRT and breast cancer:

• Hooray for HRT!?
• HRT and smoking dramatically increases breast cancer risk
• HRT increases breast cancer risks

For women with estrogen-driven breast cancer suffering the symptoms of menopause, being prescribed traditional hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is out of the question. The risks are simply too great in introducing any estrogen into the body. There are few alternatives and many women decide to suffer with hot flashes, flushes, night sweats and cold flashes, a clammy feeling, sporadic rapid heart beat, irritability, mood swings, sudden tears, insomnia, fatigue, feelings of anxiety, dread, apprehension, difficulty concentrating, disorientation, depression and mental confusion -- without any significant relief. One of the alternatives is personalized natural hormone replacement therapy that is individually mixed specific to each woman's needs.

According to Sydney Menopause Centre at Randwick's Royal Hospital for Women director Dr John Eden, who has diagnosed two women patients with uterine cancer, believes the cancer is linked to natural hormone replacement therapy. Australian doctors are warning women to think twice before taking handmade hormone compounds prepared by chemists, due to the danger that these preparations can lead to elevated hormone levels that could lead to excessive bleeding, increased risk of breast and uterine cancer and blood clots.

"Many women think they are getting a herbal treatment and are shocked to learn they are getting a hormone treatment," stated Dr Eden. Dr Helena Teede, research director at the Jean Hailes Foundation, also added that many women were unaware these preparations were not approved by the Therapeutic Goods Administration.

Karen Neuburger, Chief Lifestyle Officer of KN Ltd., has been on a lifelong quest for comfort, and as a result, brought comfort into the lives of many women. According to the profile of Neuburger, she shed the corporate dress code of her fashion career, shred her pantyhose, tossed her pumps, and created her comfort lifestyle brand. In 1994, at age 40, she became a stay-at-home mom and introduced her first pair of all-day pajamas. Oh, if you are a mother, you have to appreciate her sense of comfort and admire her marketing creativity in making it acceptable to wear pajamas during the day. If you are a woman diagnosed with breast cancer, going through chemotherapy or experiencing chemo-induced or chemoprevention hormone therapy menopause, you are going to love this woman for what she has designed.

Hot flash PJs, a line of sleepwear inspired by the sweat-wicking properties of modern athletic clothing, is one of the lines of clothing offered by The Karen Neuburger company. Made with a cotton/poly blend to keep women cool and dry at night, the 2 and 3-piece pajama sets, gowns, and short sets in pretty floral prints, plaids, stripes and solids are available in missy and plus sizes. To learn more about this line of clothing, go to KN Cool.