Treatment for Breast Cancer can involve some, or all, of the following therapies: Surgery, Chemotherapy, Radiotherapy and Endocrine Therapy, all of which can be accompanied by a huge number of side effects. The following paragraphs contain a wealth of information and some recommendations on which products, care packages and gift baskets will hopefully assist you or a loved one on their breast cancer treatment journey.

Please note, the information provided below is general advice and we always recommend speaking to your health professional about your individual situation.

Shop our range of thoughtful breast cancer gifts below and enjoy free shipping within Australia on all orders over $100.

Breast Cancer Surgery 

To support you following your surgical procedures, we offer a wide range of breast cancer gifts and products as part of our Breast Cancer Care Packages that can help reduce the scarring and increase your body's healing rates. Stratamed® can be used on open wounds, so that you can speed up the healing process and minimise abnormal scar formation as soon as possible. Once the wound is healed, this can then be switched to Strataderm® - Scar Therapy Gel to soften and flatten raised scars, reduce itching, redness and discolouration. 

The Hope Scar Care Pack contains ScarSil® Silicone Scar Gel and Scar Esthetique®, a silicone base cream designed to lighten and brighten scars, once the scar is flat and smooth. These products can be used in combination with Scar FX® self-adhering silicone scar sheets, which are designed to soften and flatten raised scars and come in a large range of shapes and sizes (including breast specific shapes) to cover different scar areas. Another option for silicon sheet dressing is Mepiform®, which works to reduce hypertrophic and keloid scars.

Chemotherapy 

Our easiest go-to for starting on a chemotherapy regimen is our HOPE Essentials Chemo Care Pack, which makes for an ideal breast cancer gift for your loved one. We have 3 different levels that cover the most common side effects you might come up against, such as mouth ulcers, dry/sensitive skin, nail weakness, reflux/heartburn and dehydration. All these products can also be purchased individually if you wanted to see how you go or if you’re after something in particular. Check out our Chemotherapy Care Package range below. 

The HOPE Essentials Chemo Care Pack 

The HOPE Chemo Care Pack

The HOPE Deluxe Chemo Care Pack 

Some of the main areas to focus on initially would be:

• Regular Mouth Care – Using a saltwater rinse after you eat (3-4 times a day) can help maintain good mouth care. Although, if you start to get ulcers, you may want to start using an alcohol-free mouthwash like Oral 7® Mouthwash or Denta-Med™. We would also recommend using a soft toothbrush, like the Curaprox Surgical Toothbrush, accompanied with a gentle toothpaste (we offer Oral 7® Moisturising Toothpaste). For more information, check out our Mouth Care collection.
  
  
• Skin Care – When undergoing chemotherapy, you should avoid fragranced products with lots of additives as this can aggravate sensitive skin. We recommend using the Daisy Cow Range or Avène Xeracalm A.D Lipid-Replenishing Cleansing Oil and Cream which is safe to use and nourishes the skin. Also make sure you always use a sensitive sunscreen outside. We like the Mother SPF Sunscreen. More information is available in our Skin Care collection.
  
  
• Nail Care – When undergoing chemotherapy, you may also find this can upset nail growth. Depending on your existing nail health, you could start using a nail strengthener like the one from the OPI Nail Range which offers a wide range of quality nail treatments – we recommend using this regularly in conjunction with a good hand cream. This is especially important at the moment with all the craziness going on in the world and the need to wash or sanitise our hands very often. As a result, your hands may get really dry, and lead to cracking. For this, we like the Avene Cicalfate Hand Cream. For more information, check out our Hand & Nail Care collection.
  
  
• Constipation – This can be a real problem in the few days after chemo as some of the anti-nausea medications really slow things down. We recommend taking something like Lax-Sachets for the first 2-5 days to keep it under control – if you think this might be an issue this time, don’t leave it, as it can be very uncomfortable! We would also recommend dietary things like eating dried fruit and plenty of water which can also help with constipation. More information is in our Digestive Health collection.

Just in case:

• Reflux – While this may not happen all the time, it can be quite common (and sometimes in the middle of the night!) which is why it is handy to have some antacid on hand. We offer Gaviscon® Dual Action Tablets which works really effectively to relieve the symptoms of both heartburn and indigestion.
  
  
• Hydration – This is particularly important, especially if you struggle drinking enough fluids or you get a lot of diarrhoea or vomiting which can be quite dehydrating. It may be worth having some Gastrolyte or Hydralyte each day to help maintain good hydration and electrolyte balance.

Radiotherapy

If you are also undergoing radiation as part of your treatment, we definitely recommend the items in The Hope Radiotherapy Care Pack, however, it would be worth checking what your radiation centre supplies first.

At HOPE, we offer dressings that are often used during or after radiotherapy. Radiotherapy is a treatment which can cause severe reactions to areas of the skin. We also carry Mepitel® Film dressing, which is a standard preventative treatment in many Radiation Oncology Centres, and is to be applied for the duration of your treatment. Mepilex® Lite can also be used to relieve symptoms of radiation reactions. A tape such as 3M™ Micropore™ Surgical Tape can also be very useful to use in conjunction with both the Scar FX® and Mepilex® Lite to keep them in place.

Endocrine Therapy

Depending on the hormone receptor status of your breast cancer, you may need endocrine (or anti-oestrogen) therapies for many years after your initial treatment as it can greatly reduce recurrence of hormone positive breast cancer. This seems 'easy' as it may just be a tablet a day, however, many women find this the most difficult of all their prescribed treatments. The common side effects include menopausal symptoms, such as hot flushes, vaginal dryness and atrophy, which some may find very severe and can greatly affect intimate relationships. We recommend having a look through our Feminine Hygiene and Sexual Health Collection or at our Women's bits pack which has a few basic products that can help manage these side effects. We also have the Avène Thermal Spring Water Spray, which can give some relief when experiencing hot flushes.

Another common side effect is aching joints. This is difficult to get on top of, and some people may require regular pain relief to maintain a good quality of life. We recommend at the very least keeping active with regular daily exercise at a level that you can manage. We also have some other products that may help in our NON-Prescription Pain Relief collection, such as Magnesium which can be used both as an oral supplement or used topically. 

Get in Touch

We hope that this has helped you and hasn’t completely overwhelmed you! If you have a chance, take a look around the Hope Cancer Care website and explore our Collections page which is filled with lots of useful information and cover areas such as Digestive Health, Skin Care, Mouth Care and more. Our Collections page also includes our product recommendations with all our products below on that same page.

If you need help finding the perfect breast cancer gift in Australia for you or a loved one that’s undergoing treatment, talk to us today. Please feel free to email us at info@hopecancercare.com.au anytime for more info.

Our team can usually post orders out the same day and you’ll receive FREE POSTAGE within Australia on all orders over $100.

PLEASE NOTE: FOR ALL PRODUCTS ALWAYS READ THE LABEL BEFORE USE. FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS FOR USE. IF SYMPTOMS WORSEN OR CHANGE UNEXPECTEDLY, TALK TO YOUR HEALTH PROFESSIONAL.