294. Two Years on Verzenio: Side Effects, Brain Fog, and Why I'm Glad I Did It | Jen Tipton

Love the podcast? Send us a text!Jennifer Tipton was in her mid-forties, running a yoga business in California, teaching indoor cycling classes, and training clients when she was diagnosed with stage 3 estrogen-positive breast cancer at the start of 2021. Her entire year — AC chemotherapy, then Taxol, then a lumpectomy, then a double mastectomy with a DIEP flap reconstruction, then 33 rounds of radiation — was consumed by treatment. By the end of it, she was exhausted in a way most people can't quite imagine.And then her oncologist told her about Verzenio (abemaciclib), a CDK4/6 inhibitor prescribed to help reduce the risk of recurrence in certain patients.We discuss: • what it felt like transitioning from active treatment to long-term medication • how movement and exercise helped her maintain energy and resilience • strategies she used to manage GI side effects during daily life • the emotional complexity of long-term cancer therapy • what improved after completing treatment • advice for patients deciding whether Verzenio is right for themSupport the showListener FeedbackIf this episode resonated with you, we invite you to leave a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.You can also click the link in the show notes that says "Love this episode? Send us a text" to share feedback.Messages are completely anonymous.If you would like us to follow up directly, please include your email address in your message so we can respond.Latest News: Join our Mailing List - New content drops every Monday! Discover FREE programs, support groups, and resources from SurvivingBReastCancer.org! Become a Breast Cancer Conversations+ Member! Sign Up Now. Enjoying our content? Please consider supporting our work.