Did anyone make it through radiation with their skin okay?

Thank you Science gal! Hope your treatments go by fast with minimal SE!!

I remember one of my treatments, my pal Julie (a docs wife) drove me to what I think now was one of the lumpies...anyway, when it was over, she insisted I come back to her place for a while.  Guess I looked pale and whatever.  Spent the afternoon with her and her pets and think it was restorative? whatever

accept all help that makes the journey easier

Asking for, or accepting help has been difficult for me.  But I've reached out for it many times during this journey.  I was always the one helping others, and I remember how good that made me feel about myself.  That helped me in asking for assistance when needed.

I"m jealous ebrener.  I'm "no breasted" and my RO is still making me do 28.

eberner, welcome to Breastcancer.org, and thank you for letting everyone know about your good experience with rads.

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I was scared to death myself. I tried to find some pictures on the net to see what I should expect and all I could find were pictures of people who had horrible reactions. Did NOT help with the fear of rads! I wish we had a place here to share pictures of these things.

I have 7 treatments left and not doing bad so far. They stopped treating one area on my neck for a few days (I'm assuming lymph nodes there) because it was starting to look kind of bad. People think I have a huge hickey! Another area under my arm is kind of purple-ish and peeling. The rest of my chest is just blotchy pink and red, but not painful at all. Unless I scratch it, then there is a little pain. 

They gave me some gel sheets to stick on my neck and under my arm. These things are AMAZING! If you have any spots that are getting really dry or starting to hurt or itch, I highly recommend using the gel sheets.

33 rads and 5 extra for the lymph situation.  I used Miaderm (bought online) everyday AFTER rads.  It felt great and wasn't greasy like the other creams that some use.  To this day, I will only use lotion or cream that soaks in fast.  The Miaderm was terrific and my breast area didn't burn.  I was, however, exhausted by the last week or so since I had already done surgery and chemo.  Rads just took the last bit out of me, but a week or so after, all was well.

My advise to you after looking at your dx and sig. info, would be to really take good care of yourself once all is done.  Our bodies and minds can be a bit fragile after all the treatment ends and this topic isn't talked about as much.  Good luck with the rest of your treatment.

It sounds like you are already done your radiation treatments but I'll post just for the record. I got through 33 treatments with no skin breakdown at all. I think I had one 'almost' tiny blister about the size of a head of a glass pin. That was it. I am very fair-skinned, sickly pale LOL. Glaxal Base saved me. The worst part of rads for me is the fatigue after the fact. Glad to read you're doing okay.

Everyone's input is so very much appreciated! Tomorrow I go for tx 7, and already my nipple is really sore. I've been using aloe vera and emu oil. I'm curious, when I'm lying on the table, it seems to me the machine positions itself 4 times as it goes from my back to front-I also hear it rumble 4 times. It seems to do this each visit, so my question is, are the same areas being treated each time or are there slight changes in the targeted area? Will my nipple get zapped each time?

6/33

Sciencegal, I had chemo before radiation and could only get through 50% of it (it destroyed my intestines) so that's why they gave me so many radiation treatments. For the last 8 treatments I started doing gauze dressings with tons of Glaxal Base and I'm sure that helped a lot. Like I said, I was more surprised at the fatigue the rads caused. My last rads treatment was May 24 and I am still struggling with fatigue and breathlessness. My skin, however, is flawless and fine.

I appreciate every one sharing their experiences.  I had my 6^th of 33 treatments today and my nipple is super sore and my skin is hot as a hornets’ nest.  It’s nice to hear success stories.

Sciencegal - I'm 17 months post chemo and in pretty good shape but after my 4th rad last week, I had to leave work early to take a 2.5 hour nap.  I'm not a napper so this is huge for me.  It's funny you wonder if it's easier having rads not coming right out of chemo....I've been thinking it would be easier right out of chemo.  It took me a while to get back up and running after chemo but I did and I’m now in the best shape of my life (well, before my recurrence last month).  I know it’s hard to be in treatment for months on end and you can’t wait to feel normal again but it pretty much stinks to feel that normalcy and then be knocked down all over again.  I guess the grass is always greener on the other side.

Like every one, I have good and not so good days.  I have a better understanding of what TN is than I did the first time and I also know how to listen to my body, which is helpful.  I’ve had some annoying anxiety that keeps me up at night and I’m sure this feeds my fatigue.  I finally gave in and asked for a Rx yesterday and I’ll get it today after work.  Fingers crossed for a solid night of sleep tonight!