September 2010 Rads

congrats dutchgirl6.  i had to have 30, 25 over the entire area and 5 boost ones on the incisions.  i had to start taking tamoxifen the next day after finishing rad. my doc. told me that i would need something for hot flashes...but no...i would be brave and i was sure that i could endure it. i couldn't. i now take the generic effexor.  it works wonders, i only have baby hot flashes now. the effexor bothered me for about 2-3 weeks, sick feeling, then after it got into my system, i am fine now.

dutchgirl6   you are absolutly right the udderly smooth does contain frangrance, however aquaphor contains lanolin (lanolin alcohol) as well. I can only say it has worked great so far for me, I am not sure if it will continue to work as well through the next 25 treatments but we will see. If anyone is interested in trying it they can/should check with their onc rad first. It is so great to have so many women on these sites to compare notes with as we are all different with different issues and what works for one may or may not work for another. To at least have the option to find something that might work for you is so helpful in trying to get through this BC thing, I am thankful for you and all the ladies that contribute to these posts.

Just finished 28 treatments to whole area today and start 5 boosts tomorrow. I find that if I keep busy during the day I don't think about pain in my skin. But at night.....that's another story. Last night I took two Advil at bedtime and felt uncomfortable but got to sleep. I woke up at 1:00am and really felt my lymphectomy incision and the most sore area of skin on my chest. No getting back to sleep. Luckily I had a pain pills leftover from my surgeries. I took a generic Darvocet and it helped right away. I asked the nurse at the rad office today if I could get a new prescription (as I only have two pills left at home) and he said absolutely yes. I will take one at bedtime tonight and see if I need another midway through the night (you can take one every 4 hours). I share this story so you will keep track of your pain level and not get stuck without relief on a weekend. There's no need to suffer, in my opinion. My sore thumbs continue to be a problem at night but not during the day. I'm thinking the Darvocet will help with that. And I HOPE the thumb pain goes away after I'm done with radiation.

Dutchgirl6-  Congratulations on finishing radiation.  I can't wait.  Had my 22 treatment today; 9 left- 2 more full breast treatments and 7 boosts.  Skin is a little pink but not too bad.

JSmiley60 -  Glad to hear you reached your half way mark.  Celebrate.

Looking forward to a rad-less weekend!! 

sespebadger...OUCH!  I love the color purple, only not on my skin!  I'm sorry you are so sore, but happy for you that they are giving you a break.  It sounds like quite a reaction.

DMS, we started together, but I think I go longer than you.  I finish up the 18th or 19th, and now no longer remember how many full treatments and how many boosts.   Wish I'd written it down.  Glad you are doing well...you are almost there!

 When I asked my techs if my skin was doing better than the norm, they said it was.  22 down now, and the red rash is the worst of it, but hydro-cortisone took the itch out of it, and a tiny bit pink otherwise, but nothing bad.  They mentioned that some people have more aggressive treatment than others, so that may be part of it?  

Everyone have a great weekend.  It will be so nice to have this over with so maybe I can not think about cancer every day!!!  It's getting to me. 

I'm finding that at night my Darvocet pill does not get me through 4 hours any more. The first night I took one (after treatment 27) it worked, the next night (after #28) one pill would give 3 hours relief and last night it seemed to only help for 2 hours. I don't like taking too much.....but I was really uncomfortable. My skin was very hot and and sore. I'm a very level-headed person, but this pain was making me feel a bit frantic. It's possible in the daytime to ignore the pain, but not at night, so I figured I could take a little extra meds at night and try not to take any during the day. I also used ice in a ziplock bag wrapped in a soft tee-shirt and kept moving that around on the whole area. My rad office gave me instructions that said NOT to use ice, but I was feeling rather desparate for relief in the middle of the night. I will ask about it Monday (by phone). I am SO glad I got this coming week off from finishing my last 4 boosts. I think I am experiencing what the nurse originally told me which was that side effects continue and can get worse for a short while after radiation treatments. I hate to think of how badly I would have been feeling by next weekend if I had not been given this break. 

Hi Karin,

I think the bolus, now fondly called "flubber" actually helps, as it absorbs some of the radiation. I got an unintentional break on Friday because the machine broke down. So I get 3 days to recover. Will see what the doc says on Monday. It's not too bad right now, but the edge of my foob sticks out of the bra pocket and rubs in my armpit, which is very irritating. I don't think I can keep wearing it! Not good.

shelleyj43  Humm they told me the bolus helps pull the rads up from your heart and lungs, protecting it.  Brings it more to the skin.  It tricks the computer to thinking there's a breast there.

Tuesday is my day in Philadelpia at the Perelman Center, I'm hoping for some answers about the radiation treatments continuing or not continuing and MORE!

Please keep me in your thoughts and prayers. 

To all of you sistahs who have finished - YAY and double YAY YAY.

bubbalu, hope you get some good news and answers tomorrow.  We'll be thinking positive thoughts for you. 

Bubbalu: good luck tomorrow, hope you get lots of answers!

Shelley: Yes I haven't been able to wear my foobs for a couple weeks. I quit wearing a bra last week but then was having extreme muscle pain on the left (radiated) side that I wore a tank top with bra in it all weekend. Tried to wear sports bra this morning and it hurt under my arm so had to tank top bra back on. I hate not being able to wear the foobs when I'm out in public!

I felt miserable this weekend! Friday night fatigue hit including weepiness, muscle soreness and rubbery legs. Oh boy thought I was back on chemo for a minute there. My left side chest muscle was so sore it hurt to drive on Saturday. I kept putting ice on it because I didn't know what else to do. It is still sore but I will see the radiologist today, so will ask about it. I have been taking ibuprofen as often as possible. I have te's in so I'm always a little sore or uncomfortable, but not like this, plus it is only on the radiated side. Ugh! I'm hope I'm not like this every weekend.

Only 19 more treatments to go........gotta keep going, one day at a time!

I also finished my rads yesterday and I am very thankful.  My aureola and nipple are much darker (and look larger?) than the other breast and the pores on my radiated breas look like dark dots....very itchy and quite tender.  I am finding the fatigue surprisingly more intense than I expected and if I don't have a nap in the afternoon, I am a mess.  I was able to extend my work leave because of this and will have the next month or so recuperating which the Rad Dr and staff highly recommended.

I'm glad that no one will be drawing on my chest anymore...for some reason that really bugged me.

I also developed the purple skin under the armpit. After radiation the nurses now put a dressing of thick lubricant and gauze under the arm. Still trying to figure out how to keep it in place so I can move my arm. We did not use the bolus today. (yes it is suppose to trick the radiation into thinking it is skin so the full force of the rays are applied to the skin) I have one more rad tomorrow without the bolus and then 12 boosts for a total of  38 treatments. I was told the skin is usually about a week to 10 days behind reacting to the radiation which is why it continues to get red when we are done.

I am having trouble with my medical leave. Well not the leave exactly but they want to cut off my medical benefits. I could pay the COBRA but that is twice as much as my income. Don't know how they figure you can still pay your bills! Will have to go back to work with only a week break after rad. Am not looking forward to it but what can you do.