Spring 2013 Rads

Ladies, all of you are doing a great job of preparing me for what is to come. I am soaking up information on what to expect, what to lube with, what to do and what not to do. Thank you for being here for all of us! xoxoxo

PS Hang in there! We are doing this because it is so important to zap any of those stray cells that decided to take a hike after surgery! They don't have a chance with those star wars rays hunting them down and killing them off! Think like a warrior!!

AmyinMI I went off diet cokes in January too. Part of it was because of cancer diagnosis and the other was because of reflux/indigestion. Not sure if it was worth it though. My reflux has really gotten bad this week so I am wondering why gave up the soda. If I am going to have it anyway I might as well drink some diet coke and have some energy. Not sure about the headache. I hope the caffiene helped! 

RMlulu thanks for the article! Nice to know there is a reason for the brain fog. Hope it gets better soon. 

I had a rough morning but feel better this afternoon. I cried during the drive to treatment but was able to get it together before I went in. I think I need to find some energy. I am too busy to not have energy! 

I am miserable tonight. Today was 14 of 16, I am burnt the skin is raw. I wont go into detail on how it looks but my DH gasped and couldnt look for more than a second. I will see RO in the morning before I agree to do #15. Today is the 1st day I am really feeling pain. The area between my breast feels like an open wound and my skin is very taunt tight. I think if a nipple could fall off mine would, its bad. I am sorry I dont mean to scare anyone just beginning but I am glad to get it out. If anyone thinks even for a second in doing the 16 double instead of the 33 dont do it. I am lubing up constantly, up until yesterday my skin was soft I just think my body has had enough.

Thanks for letting me vent.

Sending healing hugs to all my rads sisters! ((((X))))

Hi Adagio...I have the answer to your question about how many daily Gray I will be getting in my clinical trial of 2x a day for one week - it will be 3.85 twice each day so 38.5 total for the week. Hope that answers your question!

Lemon, sweetie, I am sooooo sorry that you are so far in and are burnt so badly. I am really nervous about having more than 7.5 Gy a day now that I am hearing how hard yours has been in TWENTY sessions. I am having 10 all in the same week. I have not a clue how this will go and no one on the boards has done this trial to my knowledge so I am going in completely blind as to the SE's I might experience. Huge hugs and hoping that it clears up and you can finish soon. xo

April - thanks for the info - that is a high daily dose for sure. It will be interesting to see how it goes - I am sure you will be just fine. 

I was just curious to compare the total radiation dose you were going to receive  compared to what I am going to get. My total Gray will be 52.4 - which seems a lot - I just don't get how they calculate what each of us get! I guess I will have to trust that they know what they are doing. 

Thank you all, I appreciate all your well wishes. I did ask how many grays, they said they dont go by grays they go by milligrays. The best they could figure out was 7.8 grays per day. Does that seem about right? I saw the nurse today and she said it was looking bad but how it should look, no open wounds. She left it up to me with some prodding to continue and I did. I am not hurting as bad today, strange thing is I did not use any cream, lotion or anything since I got home at 10 AM and I am better. Wondering it one of the creams etc I was using was making things worse. I a sore but not in pain like yesterday. Tech said I will be cooking all weekend so I will see how I hold up. ONE more!!

April- we will all be eagerly awaiting your arrival to the boards for a full report daily. I know your going to be okay. Just think you are helping those that will come after you! I am involved in a clinical study to make mammograms better for ILC. I did my interview today, I hope it helps someone get detected earlier some day.

HUGS to all of you.. thanks so so much..xo

adagio- 2.65 a day, is that for 33 times? That would be about 87.45 by the end. If mine is 7.8 it would be 124. April at 10 days would be 75. I am going to ask the female on Monday, I had the male today he did it in his head. I asked him why I get 7 zaps when so many only get 1-3. He just said everyone is different. My rads is whole breast, but I only had a 2mm ILC tumor, I did have DCIS and LCIS also. Just dont get why mine seems so strong for such a little tumor. I did not do chemo but I don't think that has anything to do with it. My underarm is very red and brown and extends to my back. I know we have breast tissue into our underarm.

Does anyone know if the rads kills the lymphnodes in our axillary area? I imagine no or the breast would be able to repair itself from the rads.. making me wonder...

Look at this, some good news!! And April your test is in here too!! I put the GOOD news in bold and April your test is bold also.

Thursday 6 December 2012

Cancer Research UK Press Release

A lower total dose of radiotherapy, delivered in fewer, larger treatments, is as safe and effective at treating early breast cancer as the international standard dose, according to the 10-year follow-up results of a major Cancer Research UK trial presented at the 2012 CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium today (Thursday).

Nearly 4,500 women across the UK have taken part in the START trials, which were co-ordinated by the Clinical Trials and Statistics Unit at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, and funded by Cancer Research UK, the Medical Research Council and the Department of Health.

The initial five-year results showed it was just as effective and safe to give women a lower total dose of radiotherapy in fewer, larger treatments than the 25-dose international standard. The new treatment routine also offered important benefits for women, including fewer trips to hospital, as well as cost savings for the health service.

As a result, the shorter treatment course of 15 treatments was adopted in the UK in 2008, but the longer course is still used in many other countries.

This latest 10-year follow-up, funded by Cancer Research UK, confirms these benefits and shows that very few women (around six per cent) experience a relapse of cancer within the same breast, regardless of whether or not they have a shorter course of radiotherapy after surgery.

Chief investigator Professor John Yarnold, professor of clinical oncology at The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) and honorary consultant at The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, said: “We have shown conclusively that less can be more in breast cancer radiotherapy. Three weeks of radiotherapy is as good as five weeks – as well as being more convenient and less tiring for patients and cheaper for the health service.

“The risk of breast cancer recurring continues beyond five years, and side-effects of radiotherapy can often develop many years after treatment, so these long-term results provide a very important reassurance that the shorter treatment course is definitely the best option for patients. Some doctors may have been hesitant to change their practice on the basis of five-year results, but these long-term findings should convert those sceptics.”

The same team is now setting out to investigate whether even fewer doses of radiotherapy could be just as effective, as part of a new Phase III randomised controlled trial of 4,000 women called FAST-FORWARD. The trial will compare the new standard 15-dose course of radiotherapy treatment, delivered over three weeks, with an even shorter five-dose course, delivered over one week.

Jo Haviland, a senior statistician at the ICR, added: “The START trial has had a huge impact on changing the standard of care for women with breast cancer in the UK, and increasingly around the world. Recruitment is already underway for the new FAST-FORWARD trial we are co-ordinating, to see if we can further improve treatment and spare both women and the health system the burden of extra treatments.”

Kate Law, Cancer Research UK’s director of clinical research, said: “What’s really exciting is that, as a result of this trial, women are already benefiting from the added physical and emotional wellbeing of needing fewer hospital visits for their treatment. Minimising the long-term side effects of treatment is becoming increasingly important as cancer patients live longer. We hope that women around the world will now be able to benefit from this improved standard of care.”

lemon- that is a really interesting article. My daily dose of 2.65 is for 16 treatments then I get 4 boosts each at 2.5 giving a total of 52.4 Gray - which I personally think is a lot. However, I do know that they may be giving me more because I have very small margins on the posterior edge of the breast. I will ask my RO more questions when I see her on Monday. It is all so confusing with so many different protocols.

Your so right Susan, the ILC Warror thread is full of them. Just too undetectable!! I see your in Ohio also. I am in the Cleveland area. I am TGIFing!!!!!!!

Runfree- my nodes were clear but I had 2 isolated tumor cells near the nodes, not in.. maybe that is why Im getting hit so hard there. My axillary area is swollen, looks like baby fat rolls. I had a seronoma after SNB and when I started rads I was still having slight fluid build up but not enough to drain again. The lymphedema is something I am watching for.

I have seen some ask about deodorant during rads. I have not worn any for about 2 1/2 weeks on that side, I dont think I am sweating at all just have not needed it. I also was going to shave there tonight and realize there is no need.. if thats a perk I will take it! From my SNB incision down is smooth like a babys butt!

Anyone else?