September 2010 Rads

CT124

SharonNM

I believe the more we know the better the decisions are that we make and the more comfortable we are with our therapies. I routinely had mammograms, and with this cancer all the mammogram showed was some new microcalcifications which fell in the gray area-I could have watched them further. Saw surgeon and interventional radiology suggested stereotactic bx. which showed grade 2 cells.The microcalcifications were nothing. Did ultrasound which showed 2 tiny cysts. Cancer only showed on the MRI and then on the wider excision. Had I known this type of cancer would only show on MRI, I would have been more proactive years ago. My first appt is not until the 15th-one more round of chemo thurs, and then will start middle of Oct. Hope all goes well.

shygal

Hey Dutchgirl6 - I've been married 27 years on September 17th too!!.  Congratulations.

So glad that today is a holiday and there is no radiation today.  I'm sick of the drive and whole process for radiation already and I've only been 2 times!!!.  Where I go, there are a lot of machines and apparently they go down often.  On my second visit my machine was 50 minutes behind schedule.....geez....I really don't want this daily appointment to be 2 hours a day.  I have tried to re-arrange my appointments so they are all first thing in the morning so that they won't be so far behind.  

I'm hoping everyone is enjoying their Labour Day holiday !.  Good luck to all of us getting zapped this week.

Joni57

Thanks,  I'll be seeing the Dr. tomorrow - will check on it.

Joni57

Hi -  October 1st is my last rad. treatment.  so 20 more to go......

sespebadger

CT124: My cancer only showed up as a tiny spec in annual mammogram. Turns out it was much bigger once I had an MRI. I wish I had have known to ask for an MRI earlier....also ended up Stage 3a. Like you, I had a BMX.

So, my radiology office gave me appointment cards for the first three weeks of my treatment and included today, Labor Day, as a regular appointment. Seemed strange, but I figured they thought it best to do 5 days in a row. Well, no, turns out the place was closed, so I spent 45 minutes driving over and back for nothing. I will just give them the card tomorrow and hope that they are more careful in the future!  

dutchgirl6

Hey shygal, I guess that was a good day for weddings.  Do you have anything exciting planned?  I think that we are going to wait and see how I am feeling after two weeks of rads before making any plans.  What hospital are you at?  My sister went through the same thing last year, I think that she went to Princess Margaret.

sespebadger, how frustrating that must have been!  You've gotta love that attention to detail, lol.  I hope that the drive was at the very least scenic.  Apparently at the cancer clinic here, we don't find out about our appointment time until the day before.  I have requested all mornings, since I will be working afternoons starting next week, hopefully they can accomodate me.  I mean really, how are we supposed to live our lives if we don't know when our appointments are.

Joni57, good luck at the doctor tomorrow.   

sespebadger

Hi Dutch girl,

I'm in CA and when I was going through chemo I wanted to schedule all my treatments way ahead so I could get help with rides, but the receptionist could only schedule 2 or 3 ahead. I guess sometimes people's health takes a turn, or the oncologist wants to do something different, so they expect change rather than a smooth routine. I'm the organized type and I wanted routine! Oh well. At least today I did have a scenic ride and there were lots of special music programs on the radio due to Labor Day holiday. I sang along!  

CT124

sespebadger

How frustrating. It sounds as though you did chemo also. I am doing my last round of chemo (TC)thurs, then will be set up on the 15th. will prob start about 2 weeks later, but PS wants to complete fill on expanders. It looks like last stage of reconstruction will be after radiation. Originally, they were leaning toward no rad because I had 1 pos. node and clean margins, but then changed. The chemo generally wipes me out for ab 2 weeks. I keep crashing my white count, and can't wait to be done. I am lucky here though because they will set up the times for the entire treatment so can plan a little better. I would love to hear how you do. It seems as though many people have done lumpectomy and no chemo, so am not sure what to expect. did you do expanders also?

swiftbird

Hi everyone, starting rads tomorrow until October 19th.  Aaaarggghhh. 

Be curious to hear how others are faring and what they are using -- I bought some emu oil, upon reading posts on here.  And I've got aloe vera, and aquaphor.  In fact, I've got so much stuff, I'm not even sure what to do when yet.  I did chemo already... starting that, I also felt like I had to decipher side effects and what works for some people.  My clinic hasn't said too much yet except for the obvious 'don't have anything on when you come in' jazz and told me not to do high-antioxident supplements or Vitamin C supplements.  That was interesting.  

sespebadger

Hi CT124,

You asked if I had expanders. No. When I started this process last December I assumed I would have recon. But then I had a detour and had more time to think about it and decided against. They did my first surgery (lumpectomy and lymphectomy) in Dec based on the not so great mammogram. So, sure enough they didn't get clear margins. Then, since it was also in some nodes, they decided that I had better do chemo before more surgery. I had a choice of 4 mos. of chemo or 6 mos. (same meds, just spread out or condenced) and I chose 6 months as I figured it would be easier on my body. It was, but it did drag on! I got Adiramycin and Cytoxan every 3 weeks 4 times and then 12 weekly doses of Taxol. Then two weeks later time for mastectomy. And I knew I would have radiation after that due to number of lymph nodes involved.

I got very tired of being a patient. So I didn't want to take the extra time to do recon. I was also concerned about this happening again. My Mom had breast cancer two times, two years apart, on both sides. So I chose to do bilat and no recon. It did make for a very quick recovery after BMX. And I think I will be able to easily see or feel any recurrance.

I think if they had caught mine earlier and I hadn't needed radiation I might have tried implants. It just seemed like one too many steps in treatment considering everything else. It's possible I might do recon sometime in the future, but also possible I won't. So far I find the microbead breast forms comfortable and my husband finds me attractive. I'm getting used to it.

Good luck with your expanders. My radiation oncologist assured me he could do radiation over expanders just fine.

Swiftbird: I was also told not to take extra antioxidants, to eat well and drink lots of water. 

CT124

sespebadger

Thanks for sharing. I never thought of it as being tired of being a patient, but how true. I didn't anticipate radiation and don't know if I would have done that route anticipating this. I can't wait to get the expanders out and let that process heal. I am sorry to hear about your Mom. It sounds as though she has had a long road.My thoughts are with you.

jsmiley60

CT and sespebadger: I hear what you guys are saying about being tired of being a patient! I think for me though I am just tired of doctors and cancer being in control of my life! Lol! I had chemo before surgery also sespe and had the same regimen as you, but I waited almost 2 months after chemo for surgery. I cannot believe they did surgery after only 2 weeks post chemo! And CT if I had known I was going to have to have rads I don't know if I would have gone with the reconstruction now either. I only have 150 cc's left to go on my expanders but had to stop to do radiation. Just hoping that I'll be able to complete the reconstruction after rads.

I went for my final x-rays today and they changed my start date to Thursday instead of tomorrow. A little disappointed about that - just want to get started to get this over with!

Tomorrow is my one year canceversary of my diagnosis. Can't believe it has been a year! Take care ladies.

MelBell07

Hi All,

Had my 5th rad today. I, too, am officially sick of doing this every day. And I have 30 more to go!! Sometimes it feels endless

I'm also very impatiently waiting for my hair to grow back from chemo. My last infusion was on 8/5 so I know it hasn't been that long, but I inspect my head and my eyes/eyebrows every morning to see if I can catch any new growth. I think I've become slightly obsessive.

Going back to work after a 6 month hiatus has been tough. I'm not sure if I'm exhausted from being back at work, or from the radiation...

Hope you all are doing well!

-Melanie 

DMS

Completed 4th day of rads.  Still trying to get the routine down since I go very early in the morning.  October 18 seems a long way off but am hoping it will pass quickly.    

dutchgirl6

Hi all.  I just came back from my first rads, and it went fine.  I got my schedule for the rest of the week, and they gave me mornings, hooray, just like I asked for.  They let me take my gown home, so I think that I will throw it in with the rest of my laundry to get rid of that nasty hospital laundry smell.  One down, 15 to go.

CT124

jsmilley60

Sorry to hear that you will expand more after rads. I am hoping to be able to fully expand before-although obstacles seem to get in the way. To be honest, I am happy w the size I am now but PS wants 200 more and says they will be smaller w exchange. This has been such a long process. Am meeting with PS next week to see how long I need to wait after rads for final exchange-hope not too long.

Thinking of all of you

Deb

CT124

Just laughed more than I have in a long time. Found the discussion board "You know you have breast cancer when ___" and can only say that I have experienced so many of the things that you have to laugh about as you fight this battle. Only patients and some family members will appreciate the humor.

swiftbird

melbell07, I had my last treatment around June 7th - then all my remaining hair (including eyelashes and eyebrows) fell out a week or two later.  I went on vacation around August 10th and from about mid August to end of August, my hair went through growth spurt.  It's coming in fast now and my eyebrows and lashes came back first.  Weird.  {{{{Hoping you have a growth spurt}}}}}  It does help to have that come back; you feel a little more girly to have your lashes and hair back... every litttle bit helps on this journey!!!

My first day was very uneventful.  I am the first appointment of the day, then off to work... so far so good.  I ordered Jeans Cream.  Supposed to be da bomb.

BocaCiegaBabe

DMS, you and I are on the same schedule.  Oct 18 will feel like Christmas day, won't it!

Yesterday "The Thing" seemed to run a little bit longer than it had in the previous treatments.  I didn't say anything, but then last night my breast was pink and a little sore (I'm a stomach sleeper), so I'm going to ask about it today.  Ugh...hate for them to think I'm questioning them, but what the heck... 

Tropical storm Hermine swept directly over us yesterday too, making the 25 min drive an absolute nightmare.  It took an hour to get home because of a wreck on the interstate, but I was thrilled to be caught in traffic because the rain was so heavy you couldn't see if you did more than a crawl anyway, so I had an excuse to creep along.  :>

shells43

Well, I just came back from my rads planning. They did a CT and I got tattooed. Those felt like bee stings. I will go on Monday for the simulation and then I'm off to the races for 25 treatments. Just glad to get the process started. Everyone was very nice.

sespebadger

I've done 11 of 33 rads. I have a wierd side effect...pain in my thumbs. Sounds strange, but I read about it on this website. Apparently surgery (lympectomy and mastectomy) and then radiation to lymphnode area.....can be hard on the nerves that run down to the hands. It's sporadic so far and I'll talk to the doc next Monday. I just saw him yesterday but hadn't really realized I had a problem. The pain came on again last night. It's better this am.  

BocaCiegaBabe: I hope you can learn to sleep on your side or back! I would think sleeping on your stomach will be painful eventually? 

My doc emphasized yesterday that I should apply the aloe gel they gave me up to my collar bone and over my right shoulder and around the right side behind my armpit. I guess they are radiating quite a big area....I know the machine moves to 3 positions. I am counting the seconds they are zapping me and ready to say something if the treatment varies.....I don't want to be zapped any more than necessary due to human error. I like the technicians. I really hope they are paying close attention.

kaydub

Hi shellyj43,

I'm glad your visit to the onc rad went well for you today.  It looks like we will start the same day.  I went in last week for my simulation and tattooing.  I go on Monday for what they call a block check which is a dry run and will then start the first radiation treatment on Tuesday.  You will finish before me as I was told that I would have 33 treatments. So without any unexpected snags, I should be finished on Oct. 28th.  3 days from my 56th birthday.

dutchgirl6

Just back from my second zap.  It took a long time today, because they had to reposition the machine three times.  Did anyone else get xrays before the rad treatment?  I felt so bad when I walked by the check in window and there was a sign saying that they were running 30 minutes behind, all because of me.  There was a little weirdness.  There was a student tech working today, a young man. the same age as my son with the same name as my son.  I felt a bit self conscious exposing myself with him there, maybe if his name was different I wouldn't have felt strange.  But, I got over it.  You would think that by now I wouldn't be so concerned about modesty, but you never know what can bring it on, I guess.

julia2

Had my 1st treatment today.  I found it to be......freaky.

Julia

BocaCiegaBabe

Dutchgirl, I understand the modesty.  I too felt a bit funny to see that one of my techs is a 20 something "child".  LOL  I mean...you are stretched out, arms over head, and yes, just feeling a little too exposed.

 I asked about the time thing from yesterday (mentioned in my post above), and was told the machine is delivering a dose, and depending on the weather, the temperature in the room etc, the time it takes to achieve that dose can vary.  That's good to know.  

sespebadger, I hope I can too, but that is a strong and well ingrained habit I'm afraid!

 I understand ...freaky...too julia2.  I had the same reaction on day one.  Heck had it just looking at the machine that day!  That goes away fast.

nwshannon

I to just started my first rad. treatment yesterday for the next 6 weeks. This is a great group here, I am open to any product suggestions that you all have for my skin care. It so far has not been to scary of a process it is more my mind that I find myself trying to calm down. My Rad. Onc is wonderful, I really hope the next 6 weeks goes quickly as I work full time so I am doing alot of driving in the mornings. Good luck girls, I look to all of you for love & support!

bubbalu

On the aloe vera  Are we supposed to be using the PURE aloe vera or are you'll using the one for sunburns, the green one? There is some with lidociane too.  Anything but the pure has other ingredients including alcohol which is drying to the skin.  What's the favorite and recommended?

DMS

Dutchgirl6 I was told that they would x-ray me once a week to make sure everything was positioned properly.  One of the techs is a man, probably in late 30s.  Felt a little self-conscious at first but everybody is so nice that I told myself to get over it.  He was telling me this morning about his home renovations so doubt he really even notices my breasts. :-).

BocaCiegaBabe That's cool that we are on the same exact schedule.  

Julia2 Hang in there.   The whole experience is down-right freaky.

5 down, 28 to go, so far so good. 

bubbalu

Update:  I had my second opinion today on the 'out of the radiated area' bad bad burn that I got after my 4th tx.  The onc said that I am one of those rare people who are sensitive to radiation and it's either a chemical imbalance in my body or coming from the neoadjuvunt chemo that I had.  (4 AC % 4 taxotere).  At any rate if it occurs again (and it likely will) they will have to treat it with steroids, antibiotics and hope that I can tolerate the pain/discomfort.  If nothing works I will have to forego the rad tx and hope for the best.  In my case (I'm TN) that's all I have and now I have a 30% chance of reoccurence in the breast area which would be lowered to 10% if I can tolerate the rads.  This is NOT the normal radiation dermatitis that we all get as treatments progress, it is much like a bad sunburn and very painful and anywhere on your body. 

I'm going forward with is because I feel I have invested 9 months in this BC now and I'm on the home stretch.  If it doesn't work out at least I know I tried.  4 down - hopefully 29 more to go and 3 boosts.  After all............I survived CHEMO!

BocaCiegaBabe

Gosh, bubbalu! I'm sorry to read that!  Such a bummer.  Hopefully you will be able to tolerate radiation with the help they can give you.  Good luck to you.