Fall 2015 Rads
Comments
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Queenmomcat: actually, I have a drysuit, so even better: the ocean won't even touch my skin, other than on my face (and that is a good thing: the Pacific is COLD in California!). HapperHammer: actually I might submerge (I am a scuba diver, and it is a dive location I know very well)...probably not, though, unless I am feeling very energetic by then. Will take it easy, but can't wait. And QMC: you are welcome to join me and stand sentry! :-)
Molly: CONGRATULATIONS on being done! Hugs!
Octogirl
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MOLLY!!!! CONGRATULATIONS!!! I think I am almost as happy you are done as when I was done. Happy recovery to you.
I have a little lump at the top of my breast in that same area but the MO says fat necrosis. I am not sure if she is right but for now I need to just think that in my mind because my initial thought was lymph node too, especially since that is not terribly far from where one my of my lump was. Ugh.
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Trvler, thank you! You are such a good friend. Is your MO planning to watch and see what happens with the lump
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Wahoo, Molly!!!!!!!!0
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Molly: CHEERS CHEERS CHEERS for finishing....and yeah. That letdown feeling. The fact that it's a bit foolish to be sorry to finish rads makes no never mind.
Octo: sorry for using the wrong term--prompt me: what's the difference between a wetsuit and a drysuit? And totally with you on the ocean being cold in California. I grew up in San Francisco, and never did swim in the ocean. Just an occasional dip.
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Hi QMC: the difference is just what it sounds like: in a wetsuit you get wet, in a drysuit you don't (unless, of course it leaks, never a good thing when that happens...) Basically, a wet suit works by holding the water next to your skin until it warms up, and that keeps you warm. In theory and in already warmish water: the water in the California Pacific can be as cold as 45 degrees (brr...) and when it is that cold, most divers, especially older, wimpy diver like me, go to drysuits: which work by keeping all of the water OUT...and then have a mechanism for pumping air in as insulation (along with thermal underwear worn under the drysuit...).
So, unless my drysuit leaks a bit, I will technically be following doc's orders to stay out of the 'pool' (as we divers sometimes like to refer to the ocean :-))
Octogirl
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Nana, thanks - I'm researching creams and cooling towels. But don't want to buy an abundance yet. It's not in my budget. Will consider men's tanks ... shuddering.
Yay Molly for finishing! Congrats to you.
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linda, if your axillary area is getting radiated I would recommend men's white t shirts instead of tanks. I bought an eight pack. As for lotions wait until your center tells what they want you to use,
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Octo: thank you--that's kind of what I thought (and yeah, could very well just go look it up. So thank you for indulging me.)
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Wooohooo. Done rads!! Bit anticlimactic, really.
I have been lucky to have the skin sparing approach as I still have a BMX and recon to go, and other than a bit of itch, my skin is holding up well. My last three treatments were boosts, so the most irritated bits are now 5 days since treatment, and if things max out at day 10, I hope things will be ok. Hope this is helpful to the newbies, to see some of the milder outcomes.
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Zinny: thank you for posting here! Would you feel comfortable posting this over on the Winter Rads thread? I remember being comforted by ladies who'd been treated in the summer coming over to the fall thread and posting their pictures.
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Molly, mazel tov on finishing! Linda, congrats on being a fellow “sweet-16-er.” I am waaay bustier than a 40D (how’s 40H or 38I grab ya?) and I was able to find both soft-cup bras and shelf camis that fit me. The bras were about $25 ea by Leading Lady (I bought the 40F/G/H size), through HerRoom.com (BareNecessities and WomanWithin carry them too). They look like they would never fit but they do! But at a 40D you should do fine with an off-the shelf Genie in XL or XXL, or any stretch leisure-nursing front-closers at Kohl’s, Target or Wal-Mart in XL or XXL. You might find nice ones at discount at the outlet malls near O’Hare or in Huntley (especially the Lane Bryant store at the latter). For shelf-bra camis, I went to Second Act Boutique in Lakeview (Lincoln/Ashland/Belmont area--caveat that there are some insurance plans they don’t accept) and bought Amoena in asst. colors. For me (my normal blouse size is 16, XXL or 1X), size 20 (they go up to 24) works. They are not cheap, but durable and dry quickly if you blot between towels and then hang them immediately after hand-washing. Closer to you, Bettty Schwartz’ in Buffalo Grove (847) 459-5846, Intimate Healthcare in McHenry (815) 578-0304, and Sheshe in Geneva (630) 232-0933 probably has them too (and can probably also fit you for a lymphedema sleeve & gauntlet).
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Congrats, zinny!!!!!!!0
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Congrats, Zinny! Your skin looks amazing! I look waaay better today than I did a week ago!
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queenmomcat, I thought that might be a good idea:)
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Molly and Zinny - congratulations to you on finishing.
ChiSandy, I'll look up the bras. A friend lent me her front closure fancy bras, but they are uncomfortable under the breast. I can look in Geneva and Crystal Lake, a little further west than schlepping into Buffalo Grove.
The RO nurse isn't talking yet about lotions, and I wanna know to prevent burning. I start next Tues. with a trial run. I'll copy this to the Dec Rads and begin posting there.
Linda
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Hi everyone,
I have not really been keeping up here very much, so I apologize. Between work, Radiation, College and trying to run things at the hacienda, I've really just been keeping on keeping on. I am 22 down w/8 to go. Decided to take the rest of this week and next week off, so if any of the horrible stuff happens, at least I'll be at home. I am pretty red and had some itching, but overall not bad. I am very very pale and had expected more discomfort. I hope it helps some of the new folks to hear that it isn't always really BAD :-). I still wonder if I made the right decision not to do chemo (oncotype 18), so at the follow up with the surgeon (checking for lymphedema) today, I was already asking when the next mammogram is. I feel like I am always going to be waiting for the next shoe to fall, but what's done is done, so hopefully they'll keep giving me Xanax to keep the anxiety at bay. I can't sleep at all without it because I am too much of a stress cadet. Congrats Molly!
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Sophrosyne: (laughs) You mean you managed to live a reasonably full and active life while undergoing rads? What a wonderful thing to have happen! Waiting for the other shoe to drop is pretty much universal across the spectrum of people who've had life-threatening issues suddenly tossed in our laps--my FIL mentioned this in regards having a massive coronary.
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QMC- you and ChiSandy are my heroes....
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Zinny...thank you SO much for sharing your results....looking great, sister! Hope it continues!
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2nd checkup right before tx #11 of 21. My RO is away, the other RO says the red bumps are folliculitis and that it should clear up on it's own about 2 weeks after I'm done. I have only 2 more tx this week, Friday off for machine maintenance. I too have the last week of tx off, right before Christmas. I finish on the 23rd.
The aloe Vera and polysporin seems to be a good combo, and have very little itching in spite of the red spots and blisters.
A lady honked the horn for about 5 minutes today. I'm not that excited to be finishing, but I was happy for her. I didn't ring the bell after chemo, there wasn't anyone there to hear it. I don't think I'll honk the horn either. I am very happy with my radiation team, and my radiation nurse. She's very enthusiastic and sympathetic and really optimistic. Three tic's and you're in I guess :-)
take care all,
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I wanted to add, I asked about the axilla given that I had clear nodes and was told only the breast would be radiated. Someone is not telling the whole truth because I have folliculitis and redness over the entire armpit and side of the breast. First the nurse said that they radiate the lymph nodes for insurance and when I spoke about the doctor saying that they weren't doing axilla radiation she then started talking about 'scatter'. Thoughts??
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HappyHammer: (scuffles feet, pleased/amused) We do what we can.
Mollie: I"m with you. I was glad to be done with rads, but not that glad.
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Molliefish, did they show you a diagram of the Radiation field? My nurse went over everything in the beginning and showed me a diagram of the areas being covered and exactly where to apply lotions. She emphasized that I need to cover my shoulder and back with lotions because the angle they had the machine would allow the rays to go right through my shoulder to my upper back and neck. Sure enough those areas got red but not as bad as the field they were covering.
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Zinny, I’m blushing!
“Scatter” is turning out to be a dirty little secret they don’t tell you before you start. But if there is no such thing, how come they have a double lead-lined door to the waiting area and all the techs go scurrying into the control room on the other side of the glass? Makes sense--especially since my dentist even makes me wear a lead apron when x-raying my mouth.
Linda, you can’t prevent burning. The tissue gets damaged below the skin, and if you’re lucky the redness and pigmentation change is in the dermis and not the epidermis. If you did anything to prevent that, the radiation would not work as well as it should. The reason most women get irritation & itching and many get flaking, peeling or even blistering is that normally, your epidermal cells are constantly dying and being replaced (imperceptibly) by new ones. Unfortunately, the cells that produce new skin are damaged by the radiation and can’t reproduce fast enough to replace the dying skin. Because not all of those skin-generating skills are destroyed, you start getting better a few days to 3 wks after treatment is over, as new skin once again begins getting produced faster than the old skin dies. The best you can do prevention-wise is to keep your skin moisturized between sessions so that it feels less sensitive during the period when you can’t make new skin cells fast enough. But you can make your damaged-from-the-inside-out skin feel less itchy and irritated by using creams, gels, prescription topical steroids, etc. between treatments. In other words, you can treat the symptoms.
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congrats Molly and Zinny!
Finished 23 of 33. Red, swollen and itchy but that's been relieved with Motrin and hydrocortisone cream. Starting to get funky discoloration unde boob and pain in my lymph nodes. I see RO tomorrow and will discuss. I took two days off from work to rest. I think I feel ok though because rads is way better than chemo! If I skipped chemo, I might feel differently.
Attending a semi formal event Saturday and I've decided to go bald instead of my wig. First time going bald without wearing pink. I think that was my way of explaining to the world my no hair day. Red and black dress and funky earrings to accentuate my dome.Im gonna dance and be comfy! I've missed dancing!
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Go One Bad Boob. Dance your self silly! Embrace the joy
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Thanks QMC,
Honestly, I was shocked to hold up this well, mainly because of a friend who also had BC and tried very hard to convince me to have a double mastectomy (the path she chose -no rads required for her) She had painted a bad picture of the amount of time, discomfort and disabling fatigue associated with rads and possibility of it coming back. I do know that she cares about me and only wishes the best for me, but due to some micro cancer in my lymph nodes, I would have had to do rads anyway. I still have 8 more, so it will probably get worse before better, so I'm ready. I guess the point Is that we are all different and every choice is our own. To anyone new, I would say to just take every story with a grain of salt. I was and still am terrified. I have anew sense of compassion for people with life threatening illnesses. I admire each and every one of you! Happy hump day!
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Sophrosyne: This is why there isn't necessarily one correct path to take through cancer treatment, there's only what you can live with.
For me, it was the fact that I'd had two moderately major surgeries the calendar year before my cancer diagnosis, and the post-surgical recovery frightened me more than radiation treatment or tamoxifen. Also why I'm glad that my doctors "over"tested me--this way I, like many other women in the same boat (cancer caught extremely early), had a genuine choice between two viable treatment plans.
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looking great zinny!!!
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