IMRT/Tomotherapy vs. conventional radiation treatment

Mary, I have Aetna too. I do NOT have to pay a daily co-pay. It is considered an ongoing treatment, not like seeing a doctor for something new. I see the radiation doctor weekly and I also do NOT have to make a co-pay.

   I was checking out IMRT and radiofrequency ablation before and there were several women on the boards who were very helpful in giving me info from their experiences.  Would you like me to have them contact you?....I can go through my old PMs.  I heard a woman onco/radiologist speak about the procedures and then went for a cons appt with her and they really sound like good methods of treatment to me, but two oncologists told me I had too many mets in too many places for it to be truly beneficial for me.  I think if I am not mistaken the IMRT involves less time that traditional radiation treatments and there is less burning and they are better able to control the area that is actually radiated. 

HI Mary,

I'm not sure why I don't feel as strong as usual.  I am ashamed to admit it might be more mental than physical.  But having said that... I have always been able to move a piece of furniture or carry something heavy upstairs, etc.  Now I can still do it but have to plan a little better.  I can't blame it on one aspect of my treatment, maybe just a combination of all the assaults to the body this year. I also had knee surgery in the middle of rads so that slowed me down some.

You are going to do great.  I was, vainly, a little worried my treated breast would end up smaller than my "good" breast.  I had read in large breasts there was more shrinkage due to higher doses of radiation to get to the tumor site.  (my tumor was deep to the chest wall almost)  As it turns out my treated breast looks better than the other... it is fuller and firmer, definitely not smaller. Don't know if I can credit IMRT for that but glad I do not have to wear padding to have a balanced appearance.

Pam 

Hi , I had tomotherapy- 25 treatments. My understanding was I was a candidate bc my bc was on ly left side , so they were more concerned about avoiding my heart. A friend also had left side but had a TE instead of the TRAM recon and she wasn't a tomo candidate fwiw.

it does take longer as you get a CT scan each time. I laid with my arms up and bent and head to the side, I did get a crick in my neck often and found it hard to hold the position some days. on average I was in there for about 45 min or so. I didn't have a copay every day. I burned fairly badly, I am fair skinned fwiw. I posted some pics of the burn at its peak on the pic forum in the wellburnt section- pm timtam for access if you have been here awhile. my user there is Doodlebug there.

it also costs more- my case manager said twice as much as regular rads.

I also had a mold that went over me and latched down on either side- like a tube top. I got warm blankets and had one over my arms too- ask for this- its nice!

I didn't burn too much til the last week- I wore camis until the last few days when all I could handle was soft cotton tshirts. I continued to get more burned for about 10 days after my last treatment and then I got better slowly for another week.

 I think my level of burning was above average- so don't let those pictures scare you. I used the aquaphor they gave me throughout treatment- when I started getting itchy they gave me silvadene and rx strength hydrocortisone. They helped some but I was still fairly miserable for awhile. I also used a mixture of vitamin E and emu oil- it seemed to help. It seems like when your skin is starting to break down keeping it lubricated helps. I read somewhere less people getting IMRT have skin breakdown than those getting regular rads, I guess I just got lucky. My rads onc did say he liked to see a good skin reaction so he knew it was working- I got pink right after the first couple treatments but mostly stayed at that level for about 4 weeks, then the last week the skin starting breaking down.

I am not sure how much my having a TRAM influences how the skin reacts- the skin broke down around the scar and I got a big fluid filled blister one day that then broke open- since the TRAM breast has no sensation- that part didn'tcause any discomfort.

fwiw, any one having radiation on a TRAM recon- I have seen some significant shrinkage in the reconstructed breast- in my case , this is a plus as it was too large- it is still larger than the other one but not by as much and I feel closer to symmetrical. Another seeming bonus of radiation is my scars all flattened out a lot and are more even in color and the color difference between the circle of abdominal skin and the rest of my breast is not that noticeable bc both have a little permatan. my radiated side is tanner, but I don't have a distinct line down the middle so it doesn't bother me. I do have a distinct line in my armpit but I'm not a big tank top wearer anyway and I think it will fade over time.

I am currently doing tomo and it's fine.  No complaints.  Can't compare to conventional.  I am in and out within 30 minutes.  Includes walking from parking, changing, set up, ct scan, treatment, and changing/leaving.  I am doing left side.  More precise, less risk to lung and heart.