Hi. I have had the same op and will be starting radiotherapy in a couple of weeks. I would love to compare notes once we start . All the best and let's hope neither of us have too many side effects. xx
I would love to compare notes with you as we seem to be in the same boat on this, although I have a feeling that you may be several weeks ahead of me, treatment wise.
My initial oncology appointment is not until tomorrow and then I'm guessing I have to wait a couple for weeks for the planning session and then another two to actually start the treatment. Why does everything always take at least two weeks?!
Anyway, hoping to find out a bit more on the timings tomorrow...
Fingers crossed for both of us and please do keep in touch.
Hi, I have just had my 5th session of radiotherapy, 20 to go!
I am driving a round trip of 30 miles to and from work, working from 8-1every week day, seem to be managing ok, so far. I have been making sure to eat healthly, multigrain bread, boiled eggs, cheese, loving angel delight! My husband does the driving to and from the hospital, so that is quite relaxing,
I booked my appointments for 3pm every afternoon, gives me time to get home from work, get changed and have a coffee before the 50 mins drive to the hospital, I am sure we will get bored over the next few weeks goimg back and fore.
Good to hear from you and I delighted that you are finding things are going OK, that's great news.
Although I have family & friends around, I still find it quite lonely doing all this by myself so you are very lucky to have a lovely hubby to do the driving and to chat to along the way.
Having said that, I actually work very near the hospital so I can choose either a 20 min walk or a 5 min drive, which is handy, and then I can come straight home afterwards. I have asked for my sessions to be between 4pm & 5pm so I'll see how that goes.
As one of side effects can be a feeling of sunburn, I thought I'd prempt it today by sitting out in the garden with a good book for a couple of hours. I probably overdid it a tad and am now a bit pink but, what the hell, it was just lovely to be out in the sunshine!
Take care and hope things continue as well as they've started for you.
radiotherapist advised me to not get the sun anywhere near the treated area for the whole summer and if I did wear a top exposing any of the area, to use factor 50! so watch your skin!
Thanks for the kind warning and I imagine l'll be told the same thing but thought I'd sneak some sun in now before the treatment starts!
Not very wise maybe but it seems to have helped all the scars and I have since slapped on the E45 so shoud be ok. Having spent the last few months shut away in the house, I just couldn't resist it!
Others have also warned not to use E45 once you start the radiotherapy as the skin is so sensitive and cause a reaction, sorry to scold, but better being aware!! I would love a bit of sun on my skin too, so know how you feel xxx
Please don't worry about scolding (as you put it) I honestly really appreciate all your help!
That's very interesting though because I asked if the hospital gave out any creams or lotions with the treatment and was told that they don't but she then recommended E45 to me.
Sorry to bug you but do you mind me asking what you use instead?
My oncologist gave me a prescription for diprobase cream. I can use it in the morning before I go as long as it's absorbed :-) number five done and starting to look a little pink .
like Daisyboo, I was given Diprobase cream by the radiotherapy team, use twice a day to keep the skin moisturised, I had dose 6 today and can't see much difference yet, nice to compare notes and advice, please all continue as every little helps!
Another week over for you then, enjoy your two zap free days!
Sorry, but a bit of a rant coming up now...
My appointments came through today and the 15 x 3 sessions are being done at a totally different hospital to where I had been going and is almost 40 miles away from home and over 50 miles away from work!! The oncologist didn't mention this other hospital at all on Monday and we even discussed how convenient it was that I work so close to the hospital where we had our meeting. I called them but, after consulting with colleagues, had a call back to say that they could not change me back to the original hospital as it was fully booked up and I would have to go to this other place after all.
To add insult to injury, they had also booked me in for 20 sessions instead of 15 but, having doubled checked, admitted that it was their mistake and they will be sending me a revised schedule shortly!
As you can imagine, I am not happy about all this and am now going have to rethink whether I can work at all whilst having the treatment. I would like to try but my work is in the opposite direction to this "new" hospital so the daily round trip will be pretty horrendous, never mind if any side effects kick in as well.
I really think someone could have warned me that this might have been a possibility.
Still, my first session is not until 13th May so I have just under a month to calm down (!) and decide what to do about work in the meantime. I understand that they are changing some poor souls over from one hospital to the other mid-treatment which would be much worse for them so I guess I can count myself lucky in a way?
Apologies, rant over now!
Take care and I hope next weeks goes as well for you.
Gosh, that is terrible news, no wonder you are having a rant. I really sympathise with you, but looks like there is not a lot you can do.
Hopefully you can get your head round these changes before your sessions start? Have a restful weekend and think positive. Shirley x
For some reason your last post didn't come through until after I had sent my rant so sorry to hear that your skin is starting to react now and I hope it doesn't get too uncomfortable for you.
Thank you for bearing the brunt of my ranting....as you say, there isn't a great deal I can do about it, it is what it is.
Hi Susu I have had a good weekend, sorted out the garden, a bit late planting my flower seeds, so hope they come through! Also transplanted all my strawberry plants into the raised bed, so have been quite busy. I noticed in the shower this morning the straight line the zapping has made, right from under the left armpit across the whole breast, so keeping an eye on that, hope your weekend was good? Shirley x
You've put me to shame with all that gardening, wow! I wandered around my garden a few times if that counts? No, didn't think so!! I did top up the bird feeders though and made sure they would be happy for a few days so that was something at least... it's been very breezy here so that's my excuse!
Sorry to hear about the zapping mark, I really hope it does't get any worse for you. Out of interest, have you had any issues with the skin on your back at all? You haven't mentioned it so I am guessing you are ok but I read in some of the blurb I was given that the exit site can also be affected by the treatment and wondered how anyone managed with that.
Take care and have a good week, will be thinking of you xx
Interesting about the skin on the back, the way my machine is set....I am on a trolley and the machine arms move around me, the angle the head is set at means it only targets the breast, so if you can imagine lying flat with your arms above your head, the machine head goes way down under my left armpit pointing diagonally up and across only picking out the mound of the breast, then it moves round to my right side, diagonally pointing to the other side of the breast, so basically it is only targeting the breast area, quite a machine, though it has broken down twice in the last 2 weeks!
I had my 11th zap today and felt so food, I am just back from a 45 minute cycle! although most nights I just sit knitting and watching telly, but the sun is shinnng and it felt great, I will probably sleep well tonight!
