June 2020 radiation group
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Hi, I’m new here. Today I had my 12th treatment (out of 21). After the treatment, I started feeling tired/weak. I suppose this is the fatigue they told me about. Is it too early to get fatigue?
I hope everyone had a good day today :
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cm2020, you got this! Almost done!
callmegenie, it's not too soon to feel fatigue. Definitely give yourself extra down time and bank extra sleep on the weekends if possible.
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BCat40, woohoo! You're done, so happy for you! There is a light at the end of the tunnel.
callmegenie…, I'm always tired and sleep a lot on weekends like BCat40 said. I'm on session 18 of 25, but started feeling fatigue around my second week.
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Thanks for the answers :
I'm curious, what cream are you using? I'm using Triple B which is the one my RO recommends.0 -
I made a mistake today that I hope no one else makes. I have a small open wound from surgery that doesn’t want to heal. My RO suggested putting Bacitracin on it and another doc suggested Medihoney. Since I didn’t want a grease stain on my clothes, I covered the area with a very light gauze so the wound could breathe. I put some tape on the gauze to help it stay in place. All was good until I decided to change the gauze. The tape pulled off the top layer of my skin! Ouch! It is still burning every time I touch it.
So be very careful at the end of treatment when you remove the stickers. I used alcohol to help get them off so that I could keep my skin
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BCat40-Woohoo!!!! You're finished. Big (((hugs))) and hoorays for you!!!
I had my covid test yesterday(was less awful than the first one pre-surgery, nurse said the swabs are smaller now and yes, it definitely was not as inflaming as the first one)
I called the center today and asked "Am I supposed to come in or wait to get results?" Doc called back and said, "Wow, I guess I guilted you into the test, Victoria?" and laughed. Honestly, I was NOT amused. I'm thinking-you're the doc, I'm the patient, I do what I'm told. I asked if I should come in. Her response, "Well, since we've opened this pandora's box, I guess you have to wait now." I truly am not going to share any concerns anymore as I do not wish to be labeled possible covid nor do I want any more delays with my radiation. Just want it finished. And I had diarrhea again today, though only once, and so I just won't tell them.
Possibly, the breaks I have had during this have helped my body to rest a bit. I feel good, but underarm is getting dark and kind of leathery. I am using camwell, vit e oil and aloe in a mixture all over my breast twice a day.
I am hoping that I get covid results tomorrow as I want to prepare for Fourth of July with my adult kids and g-babies visiting, and get on with treatment. I hope everyone had a blessed day and that Wednesday treatments are a snap for everyone. xx
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hello there. I had 25 treatments of radiation. It's a walk in the park. Keep the area moisturized after each treatment. Treatment only takes 10 minutes. You got this, stay positive.
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Welcome, callmegenie! We're glad you've joined our community, and hope this can be a source of support for you as you continue treatment. Best of luck on the rest of your radiation therapy, we're all here for you!
The Mods
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callmegenie....It definitely isn't too soon for fatigue. I use 100 percent aloe vera and callendula cream.
toria1212. I am so sorry about the issues you are having. I hate that radiation is being delayed, but it is the smartest thing to do. Hugs.
cyathea. Oh no! Ouch! Thank you SO much for the warning! I will make sure I am careful. The only stickers that have seem to completely stay stuck are the ones on my affected breast so I will use alcohol to help remove them once I am done.
Jane6475. With all due respect, this hasn't been a walk in the park at all. The fatigue has been overwhelming and the emotional toll even higher. I have found radiation to be violating, humiliating, invading, and I have cried through more than a few of my treatments. My breast is swollen, sore, and the skin underneath is starting to breakdown. I wasn't prepared for it to be as emotionally difficult as it has been, in part, because so many people have said how easy it was. It isn't easy. Not for me anyway. I am glad you had no issues and so hope that others can also say it is a walk in the park. But for me, it has been traumatizing.
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Thank you!
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callmegenie…, I tend to over moisturize. I use the following per day: miaderm (expensive) - 2x, oatmeal paste with arnica and calendula cream - 1x, half calendula and half arnica cream at least 1x. Calendula helps with burning and arnica helps with inflammation. Aloe vera gel as needed. I also moisturize my back where the radiation beam exits. My skin has held up well. 19 session down out of 25. My skin is mostly tanner and darker brown in my under arm area. I'm tan/olive complected.
I had burning and redness under my breast on Sunday and Monday. Thought I was having serious SEs. It was very tender and I finally figured out it was the bralette that I was wearing. Switched to tank tops under my shirts and no more redness. Glad I'm working from home.
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@grdngrl505 Thanks for your reply. What are SEs?
@cm2020 Thanks for your reply. Where do you buy calendula cream?
I hope everyone had a good day
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callmegenie…, SE stands for side effects.
Here's a link to the acronyms and abbreviations.
https://community.breastcancer.org/forum/131/topic...
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callmegenie...My RO gave me a tube of the calendula cream. However, I also got it from Amazon, though my RO said you can also get it at Whole Foods. Here is a picture of the kind I use:
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Hi ladies,
I don't know if this is right thread, but I'm wondering if anyone of you lost an implant due to radiated skin not being healthy enough to support it. That's what I'm going through right now. My plastic surgeon most likely has to remove the implant on the breast that was radiated.
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startingchemo,
that can unfortunately be a common complication with radiation and reconstruction. You might want to check out this thread in the reconstruction forum:
https://community.breastcancer.org/forum/44/topics/806748?page=1
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startingchemo, I’m sorry you have to deal with this. I did not have implants, but I have read that radiation can damage skin so that reconstruction is not possible. It makes sense that radiation could cause the skin to shrink or become thin so that the weight of an implant couldn’t be supported.
The thought of more surgery must be very disappointing for you. I hope that you are able to heal quickly and put this behind you.
I can relay that wearing a prosthesis is not that bad. With the options that are available now, I don’t think anyone would be able to tell the difference between your implant side and the prosthetic side
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Hi all, I rang the bell today! It was a very happy day to put radiation behind me (hopefully for a very long time).
The fatigue is still with me but at least I won’t have to get up so early to make it to the hospital at 7:30 each morning! I will definitely remember this “Independence Day”.
Ringing the bell is not really a “thing” for me, but I did it more for everyone else. When I started radiation, I remember that it made me happy to hear someone else ring the bell. The staff gathered and clapped. Everyone has been very supportive and I am so grateful for them.
I was nervous about the radiation to my spine, but I shouldn’t have been. The pain in my back is minor and I didn’t have any GI or other issues.
The open skin from removing the bandage tape is still painful but that should heal in a few weeks. On my doctor’s recommendation I am putting a honey ointment on it. I didn’t know which kind to buy so I tried both Medihoney and Nature’s Gold. I like Nature’s Gold better. The Medihoney has a higher percentage of the active Manukah honey ingredient but it is more like a thick paste and it stings for a long time after I applied it to the wound. I don’t need more pain right now! Nature’s Gold is a thinner ointment and has a pleasant scent. I think it will work better to keep the wounds moist so that they heal. It may even help my nipple skin which is dry and some of it is peeling.
I hope my experience helps others who are still being treated or who will have radiation in the future.
I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend and gets lots of rest and healing. To those of us in the States, Happy 4th of July
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grdngrl505 thanks for the abbreviations!cm2020 thanks for the photo and information about the cream!
cyathea congratulations on being done with radiation, yay!
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Random thoughts, experiences, etc.
Today was my 14th treatment out of 21, so it is kind of a milestone. I get tomorrow "off" because they won't work tomorrow, so long weekend
When I'm lying on the table, I pray. The other day, I felt the presence of my guardian angel so I invited him/her to listen to the music with me. It has only happened once and it was nice.
Sitting up from the table gives me a terrible back pain, but it is short lived.
Funny, but I look forward to choosing what type of music I want to listen to each day. It's the exciting part of the therapy, lol. They have Pandora so the techs ask me what I want to listen to, or I just tell them.
Doing this treatment during the Covid pandemic is so strange. To never see the faces of my doctors, nurses, technicians, etc. is so inhuman... It must be the same for them.
I've been having tummy aches for two weeks already. The RO says they are not related to the treatment because the rays are not touching my belly. So she says when we're done, I should see a GI doctor. The nurse told me I should not go see my PCP because they like to be in control of everything. I'm getting really concerned about these aches. I mean, why? I started drinking chamomille tea to see if that would help. It helped yesterday but not today...
Wishing everybody a nice weekend
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cyathea, congrats on being done!
Just wanted to report back that on a positive note, I am 3 days out from finishing and am finding the fatigue to be lifting very quickly.
My breast on the other hand is pretty angry. I got 80 ccs drained out of my seroma yesterday and the breast feels worse than it did after surgery. Sore from needle plus having zappy nerve pain from the rads, and my nipple hurts too. Icing and hoping the pain goes away soon. Tylenol/advil don't help.
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CM2020 I had 25 treatments. I didn't find it to be a walk in the park. I was fatigued the first week and was easily emotionally upset. Worked through the whole thing. On the other hand, my skin didn't have a problem Redness and residual discoloration on affected breast. My last one was 2/11/20
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BCat40...I am also 3 treatments away from being done. Isn't it a great feeling? I am really sorry about the pain and issues with your breast. My skin is holding up pretty well (except for underneath my breast), but I am also having the zapping pain and general breast pain/swelling, but my nipple is by far the sorest part of my breast (followed by the sentinel node area).
redhead403...Thank you for the kind words and understanding, it means a lot to me. I'm glad you are doing well now.
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I meant that I am 3 days post-treatment, not that I have 3 days left.
grdengirl, glad you have more energy even though you're still in treatment, it bodes well.
cm2020, sorry you're on the pain train with me. In addition to the general nipple pain the top layer of skin on my nipple also peeled off.
I might try the manuka honey ointment cyathea mentioned. Hope I can find it at CVS or Whole Foods.0 -
@cyathea Congratulations, sweetie! I'm so happy you are finished. Praying you heal quickly and well.
@BCat40, hoping your breast settles down and starts to fully heal.
Everyone, it is such a gift to get an extra day off, no? I pray everyone has a blessed, safe and memorable Fourth of July
I have five to go, but diarrhea has mostly gone. I am grateful.
xx
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Happy 4th of July, everyone.
Next week I have an appointment scheduled for Tuesday called Exit Exam (it's on the last day of WBRT and before the boosts). Does anybody know what it is about? TIA
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callmegenie...I don't know if this is the same thing or not, but the nurse told me that after my last treatment (this Wed..yay!) I will meet with her and she will go over the following things: what to expect now that radiation is over, after care, and answer any questions I have. She said they strongly believe in education and think this step is important so that you don't wonder and worry about things that may be happening. Could that be what you are doing, only they have a nice name for it?
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cm2020... Hi, I don’t think it’s the same thing because it sounds like you’re going to be done this coming Wednesday (yay!) whereas I still have to do 5 boosts. Did you have boosts or just WBRT? This appointment is on the last day of regular radiation and before the boosts...
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