April 2011 Rads

today is not my day...nothing to do with Rads, those aren't until 5pm, but couldn't find my coat this am, think I left it in LI over the weekend, walking from the Path train to work was a nightmare due to all the TV trucks near the WTC site, they were blocking so much of the roads, then I get to work and my cream sweater is all stained, which I somehow did not notice this morning...Work itself has been crazy too.  While I'm ranting, I got up on the Path train this morning for a mom who had a 4 or 5 yr old with her, ever notice it's always the women who get up, for pregnant ladies or for moms, never the men.  Or maybe that's just in NY.  OK rant over...

Hi everyone:

Today I will have had 14/20 treatments.  I haven't posted much but I do keep up with all the posts. I lost my car keys last week...not sure if it is chemo brain or chemopause brain, but they still haven't surfaced.  

My only complaint is that I am tired and actually fell asleep Sunday afternoon for 2 hours which is so unusual for me.  My skin feels a little sensitive but none of the issues that some others are experiencing ie: blisters, swelling.  Maybe that will come...  

One strange thing that is happening is that my eye lashes are already growing back and they are coming in black.  They are usually white due to my coloring.  I thought they took a long time to come back?  The hair on my head is slowly coming back and my girls tell me the top feels like a baby chicks down its so soft.  Can't tell what color it is as it seems to be coming in black, but I am fairskinned and used to be a redhead. 

Hope everyone has an ok day. 

Wondered if anyone else is on week 5 of rads? I am at 22/33, and the pinkness that used to go away by the end of the day stays and gets worse as the day goes on. This road seems incredibly long, and even with 11 left (including 5 boosts) I still have to mentally gear myself up for going in every morning - and it's only 5 minutes from my home. I get a mini bout of depression every morning, and am glad that I start working in my home office at 9am to keep my mind busy, or I would stay in that valley all day long.

Just a heads up to that my RO said that week 5 is really the critical one for keeping the breast as dry as possible to avoid blistering and peeling. Since I am 52 with big floppy breasts, the area under my breast where the skin touches skin is hard to keep dry. If anyone has any suggestions on how to do that please let me know! Usually I put on the aloe gel and lay with my shirt off and my arm over my head until it dries, but during the day it's hard to keep moisture away. Don't want to think about blisters - it's getting uncomfortable enough as it is.

Hi Aimee, my techs told me curad no stick pads - I tried it, then I couldn't find it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm 41 with huge floppy breasts!  I told the techs I might try kotex pads back to back - but you know poise ones - the long version - stuck to each other might really work.....

Someone else maybe you even, suggested a t-shirt under the bra cami etc, so you can tuck it under?  I bought a bra much bigger than I needed in normal days - but that lifts the breast enough to not stick to the other skin - since corn starch is allowed under the arm maybe it's allowed there too?

Hang in there Aimee, I haven't even gotten to 11! 

Thank you for perspective Ritaz, wow, inches.....

If it helps...I found the Fruit of the Earth 100% aloe at Walmart

Has anyone used Remedy Nutrashield by Medline?  It's a cream that my doctor's office provides, and I'm just wondering how it worked for anyone who's used it?  I'm only on 4/28, so I'm not a good reference point yet! 

Aimee, I start week 5 today.  I haven't got any non-stick pads yet or tried the bra over the t-shirt yet, but I'm only a b cup, so don't have too much overlap!  The only place I feel sore is the node incision site.  My skin went back to a nice pale over the weekend, but is right back to pale red after Monday.

mnleck, I actually had a reaction from mixing the Aloe and lotion, so that might not be a good idea for everyone. My skin got very, very dry and flaky. 

 Ducky - thanks for the good vibes.  Unfotunately, yesterday at Rads, I left my necklace in the locker room.  I'm afraid maybe I put it on the high shelf and forgot it (damn chemo brian). They said this morning, they couldn't find it.  It's so annoying as I am the last one there at night, I'm afraid the cleaning crew might have taken it.  And it was a new necklace my mom gave me for Christmas.  I'll check tonight, just in case they didn't really look that well...

13/33 done today!  Usually if I have to wait at all back in the waiting room where you sit there with strangers in a hospital gown, (lovely) I am sitting there with older men, feeling very uncomfortable.  This morning there was a problem with the woman before me so I had to sit there for an extra 20 minutes waiting...no biggie.  A woman came out and was waiting for her appt.  She sat down next to me and started off with a "sweet girl, what on earth are you doing here?!".  Then when she found out I was "only" 40, she just couldn't believe it.  She went on to tell me that this is her 2nd bout with the beast, and that she is doing well.  Today was her last rads...40 all together.  I was wishing I could have sat and talked with her for hours, but they called her back.  I told her that I wanted to be able to hear that bell ring when she was done and she said that wouldn't be all I would hear, and she was right.  I was lucky enough to still be there when she came out and I got to witness her ring that bell, jump around, scream and sing.  This woman was a complete stranger to me and yet she brought so much happiness to my day.  Just another reminder that we're all in this together, and we can rely on one another.  Love you all

thegood5 -

what a great story - brought a tear to my eye. You are right, we are all in this together. I have 10 more to go until I get to ring that bell!

Aimee

I think I just completed 9, I was thinking 10, but oh well, I really can't remember....and thinking hurts today!

I met a waitress today on her fifth round of brain cancer.  She was in remission, but going to start radiation again tomorrow.  I never noticed she didn't have eyebrows....

The medline creams (I don't know about them for radiation but) have to be the best creams I've ever used.  I can only find them on Walgreens.com not in any stores.  They have olive oil in them, I think, and my dry ugly dark elbows improved in two days!

Ladies today was #25/25, yes no more rads and never please God ever again. My husband made cupcakes and wrote Thank You on them and we gave them away today to the clerks, techs, nurses and my RO.

So I thought my skin would hold up...well just over the weekend I developed painful blisters in my armpit..the skin had turned from a deep cherry to pretty much almost grey. Between Monday and last night, the blisters popped open and my skin started coming off! It's really gross, scary to look at, I try not to touch it because it just keeps coming off.

They gave me silvadene creme to put on the open blisters yesterday. I asked my husband to help me rinse/clean my armpit before putting it on. I didn't realize how much it would hurt. When he poured the sterile water on the open blister I screamed and I think that startled both of us. After he put the silvadene on my armpit I asked him to slather me with aquaphor. He went over it ever so gently and when it came to other redder parts that look like they might form into blisters, I started trembling from the pain. I'm crying silently, I look over to my husband and I see that he is crying silently too and trying to get a grip on it.

We were praying the other night and in the middle of our prayer he suddenly says "Lord please give it to me instead!". I was like NO, NO, NO....

 As I come home my bottle of Tamoxifen was waiting for me at the door. I'm terrified of taking it but I just said a quick prayer...see you at the other end after 5 years ...and took it. 

Big cyber hug to everyone ))

Letlet

 Ring the bells... break out the champagne.  Radiation is over.  Rest up, get your strength and recover.   So happy for you!!! 

Is anyone else feeling dehydrated with rads? Is that a SE? I'm drinking 3 liters of water a day (easiest to measure with the jug I have), and my skin is so dry....even my feet....

Beautiful story, letlet.  Congrats to you!! Yaaay! keep in touch

Gina:  I definitely am drinking twice the amount of water than I used to, but not feeling dehydrated anymore.  Eventually you'll get to the point where you catch up and feel better..Enjoy the dryness now because your skin will start to feel "sticky".  Let me know if this happens to you.  Probably why blisters form, but slathering on my Aquaphor seems to help.