AUGUST 2009 RADS

Hey Kawee - thanks for the boost for me to post.  I used to say I had chemo tired during chemo but with radiation it is different - I am not tired so much as just feeling like I don't feel like doing anything.  I had #21 today and so far so good.  Only 14 more!  I can almost see the end of this road!  I am a little soar but not too bad.  I know what you mean about the emotional roller coaster - yesterday I felt great and today I am not in such a good place.  I feel fat and ugly and thinking my hair will never grow and wondering what the heck else must I have to go thru once this is done. UGH!  I know I am lucky and it could be worse I just loose sight of that sometimes!  sorry now I am ranting too.

 Chirs, cake and janet -hope your doing well

Take care everyone we can get thru this -

Hello all hope everyone is GREAT!! Just wondering if any was taking antioxidants during radiation? Does anyone know about how co-pays for insurance works during radiation--do you have to pay for each session? I hope not that would be expensive.

Kawee, Cake, and Lori,

I am not holding up too well.  I did not have treatment on my collarbone this past Thur and Fri becasue they were very red.  They, and my armpit peeled over the weekend.  I just got 2 more treatments on Mond and Tues on everything.  I am so sore.  I got my sim for boosts today.  They are going to do my 7 boosts on scar starting Thurs through next week to give my skin a chance to heal.  Then the last 5 days will be back to the normal rads.  I really thought my skin would hold up better.  i am in the sun a lot in the summer and go on at least 2-3 cruises to caribbean each year.  I never  burn.  I think I am catching up on all the times that I could have burned!!

I too am very tired.  My boys keep me busy with sports so I don't have a lot of time to think about it.  When I finally do sit down..I crash!!

Hope you are all doing well...we have about 13 left and then done!!!

Take care and thanks for checking in on me,

Chris

Pure aloe vera gel (refrigerated feels great). Aquaphor was prescribed by doc.Use it often, but not within 4 hours of treatment.

That's all I've been told, hope it helps.

Chris

My rads are in the late morning.  When I feel the fatigue coming on, if I can't nap, I take a B-12 tablet.  This has helped me a half a dozen times so far, so I do feel the effect is not something I am imagining.  It may not have the same effect on everyone, but it can't hurt. 

Hiya KarenVW!  Large breasts were always in my dreams but never a reality (now they're lopsided and deformed which is really cool, LOL!  One is like an "A" and one is a saggy "B").  Actually...after all this I'm going right back to my surgeon and tell him to take these puppies off!  If I have to go through all this crap, I want a nice new set of boobs   I'm going for a "C!"  (Why i'm doing rads now is a whole other long thread that I wont bore you with )  I'm sure someone will come along and offer some help on that question.

I am, however, on the prone position, and I think it's worked out great!  The docs say it's better to reduce hitting lungs, heart, and stuff.  Sometimes they cant do it because of tumor position, but it's worked for me.

Hiya ChrisC!  I'm so sorry you're dealing with these terrible skin issues!  I am very fair skinned (like see-through) and burn only with no tanning, so I've had some lovely burns in my life (and a melanoma...another long story), but my skin is barely pink.  My surgeon (awesome guy!) told me that fair skinned folks do better with rads than those who tan.  (Dont worry, I have other SEs but it's nice for my skin to do something right for once, LOL!!!)  I got my sim today too.  11 more total and I'm DONE (5 boosts or 6 I think?)!

I use Boiron's Calendula Gel which you can get at drugstore.com in 2.6 oz tubes at the suggestion of the rad onc.  I guess it's really working!   drugstore.com ships in one day btw.

Kawee girl! I'm so glad I can make you laugh!  Hopefully I'll keep doing so, even though I dont want to cause you any more "stiches" in your side (get it?  ok lame joke).  I tend to joke a lot in life and find that I offend lots of people that dont know me well, LOL!  I belong to a large Christian church, so when I pull out my sarcasm, you can imagine how many "vinegar faces" I get, ha ha!!!  But seriously, nothing inappropriate...all PG.  I HAVE to laugh at how many contraptions and poses I've had to endure through this whole thing.  And needles, and bruises, and wires, and...okay digressing!  I'll be quiet now.

hey everyone

Ditto to all on fatigue-- so different from chemo where you just felt awful all the time.  I am peeling myself off the floor some days, others I am better.  I hear you Lori about feeling like when will this end (I know it will end-- I am on # 2 of 9 boosts-- finish the total of 33 treatments next friday) and when will I look and feel myself again?? My hair is growing back but is is so so so slow--chemopause sucks and tamoxifen is next-- yeah.  Skin holding up with 100% aloe and aquaphor and a glass of red wine every night (my rads dr. printed out the red wine study for me and told me to try it!). I was told NO antioxidants during rads-- not even green tea which I love. I got my flu shot Friday on orders from oncologist and was told I would need to get the Swine flu shot as soon as it was available.

Hang in there everyone--we are going to get through this!

Hugs

Helen

Cool, Chris!  Let me know how it goes for ya!

Regarding anti-oxidents...in my "welcome to radiation" booklet they say no to vitamins, period.  It explains that rads works same as chemo, kills cancer and healthy cells, and continues to do so weeks after treatment stops.  If you help the healthy cells, you may help the cancer cells to rebound.  I stop rads in Oct, and i was advised not to take any supplements until after New Year's .  So I put my supplements aside.

Darn, and I was thinking about the day after rads hitting it hard with all my antioxidant "stuff".  Maybe not a good idea.  I asked the rad onc today if he had any vitamin B shots.  He said no.  My rheumatologist gives them to me and they work good.  However, he's in Beverly Hills, too far for me right now.

The tech said she couldn't believe how well my skin was holding up.  Breast is sore tho.

I told her only 5 more then 6 boosts and she said, "maybe only 5".  Don't they know up front.  First they said 7, then the tech said, no 6, now she says maybe 5.  What the heck? 

 CAKE, We are almost done!!!!  You're doing great with 4 kids!!  You're my new hero.

ccbaby - I had red bumps that itched, I used the cortizone cream and it worked great!  Now there gone and I just use aquaphor.  Doing great on that!

Woohoo WLL!  Congratulations on finishing your chemo!!!  My guess about antiox...no one really knows, ha ha!  I have the same issue about whether to take Tomoxifen while doing rads (my onc says yes) or wait till rads are done (my surgeon says wait).  So, I waited.  Hopefully that's the right thing.  Who knows!

Anyone having a skin breakdown of their scar area? Yesterday, I had tx #22 of 33. It doesn't hurt but looks like a dimple with a little infection in it, it's very small. Is this the beginning of tissue breakdown? I wasn't too worried about the boosts until I saw it. They will start targeting the same area next week, so now I'm a little nervous.  

I started tamox before rads per my surgeon, onc and rad onc. They all agreed it was better to start right away, so for me the answer was very clear.

When I asked my rad onc re: antiox, he said no mega doses especially of Vit's E & A. They put me on Vit D and calcium prior to rads due to osteopenia. He said those were fine. He added, I could take a multivitamin if I wanted.

Also, I'm curious as to how everyone's blood work has been going? Are your WBC & RBC being affected? I haven't had any blood work since a month out from chemo and I was still very low back then. Actually, they were both lower than when they threatened me with hospitalization (WBC 1900). I guess it wasn't as problematic at the time because I was done with chemo, so they figured my body would begin repairing itself. I just curious because of ccbaby's last post. I do feel like my RBC has improved, I can now walk up an incline without having to stop to take a breath.

CCBABY - How is the Herceptin going?  The onco told me he was on the fence with me on that since mine is DCIS w/1mm microinvasion?  Said we would talk about it after radiation.  Just wondering about any SE.

Another opinion on tamoxifen during rads, my oncologist told me there is a study which shows it prevents rads from working as well.  So many opinions, what does a person do??  Oncologist also told me not even a vitamin.  I've been dying for a diet coke too (trying to give those up).  I know if I could only have a vitamin and a diet coke, I'd feel normal again.

Cake - Another thing my onco said (he's a very young Dr.) and I hear very good (???) is that they did a study in Finland and they discovered that Herceptin given once every 3 months for a year is just as good as once a month.  He said we (he) might consider that.  I've read (which really gets me confused) some studies that said Herceptin in some Her2+ breast tumors promote reoccurence.  Also I've read they shouldn't give Herceptin if you don't have chemo (which I didn't have).  I'm going to talk to him about all this when I see him end of October.  Suppose to start tamox at the end of rads (Oct. 2 - yea!!!).  I'm only slightly ER+, but I've had my ovaries removed.  So, that's another question I have.  Is that really necessary -- not looking forward to that.  Anyway, too much info, I know.