Radiation therapy

prsenna

I have a pacemaker and cancer in my left breast, when I have radiation after my surgery, how can my pacemaker be protected. I am totglly dependent on my pacemaker. Please advise. Thank you!

Moderators

Hi there, prsenna-

We want to welcome you to our community here at BCO! We understand that you're worried about your pacemaker during your radiation therapy. We would definitely advise bringing your cardiologist into the discussion with your treating oncologist. Many people with pacemakers undergo radiation with no side effects, but extra monitoring may be warranted.

We also have a forum here for members with a breast cancer diagnosis in addition to another diagnosis or comorbidity which you might find helpful! https://community.breastcancer.org/forum/142

The Mods

Outfield

Your question has been on the minds of radiation oncologists and physicists at least since they came out with a set of guidelines for managing radiation in patients with pacemakers in 1994, so it's not new. A lot has changed since 1994, both in radiation oncology and in electrophysiology cardiology, so I wouldn't bother reading those guidelines, but just know that others have thought about it for a long time.

I would be sure to be getting radiation at a big center, where they've dealt with this a lot before and have protocols for your situation. It can't be that uncommon - pacemakers and other implanted cardiac devices aren't uncommon, nor is radiation therapy. Ask them what they do to protect you from pacemaker failure. Here's a link to what they do at Oregon Health Sciences:https://www.ohsu.edu/xd/education/schools/school-o...