Starting Radiation August 2017

hi ladies

I finish chemo TCHP and I had BMX on July 25

My doctor told me that I need radiation so for sure I will start radiation on August

Hi TWills - I steeped 2 green tea bags in about 5 ounces of boiling water. I wanted it strong so the tannins would be hopefully more powerful which is what helps pull the heat out of the skin. I measured out 5 ounces in my coffee cup so I'd know where to stop when I poured boiling water in. I let it steep on the counter a good 30 minutes or even longer. Would then squeeze the tea bags out and pour the tea into a glass bottle and store in the fridge. I made this every other day to keep it fresh.

I was 2 weeks out yesterday from my treatment. My skin only got pink and is completely back to normal now. If you read my prior post I treated 3x a day and absolutely believe the most important treatment of the 3 was using cotton balls/squares to bathe the breast, armpit, chest area immediately after getting off the radiation table. I went straight to the dressing room and used 3 cotton squares to "wash" the area. Week 1 I was like "ok maybe this will help" but by week 2 the cotton was HOT to the touch each time and the pink/red that was starting to show after each treatment would disappear right in the dressing room.

Let me know if I can help you in any way. Best of luck!

TWills - No problem! Yes - the full recipe/protocol is on the first page of this forum. I'm just so hoping the Aug. ladies will do it!! It can't hurt and if it helps anywhere near as much as I know it helped me, then I will be thrilled that others can hopefully avoid serious skin issues!! I had not one sore, blister, oozing - nothing. No peeling, no flaking. And I'm blond, blue eyed, very fair skinned. I burn easily so I was really worried. I know we're all different, but I swear that tea pulls that heat right out of the skin! It's unreal!!!

DodgersGirl - You're so welcome!! I can't tell you how much I want this to help others like it did me. Anything we can do to minimize this already difficult (to say the least) time is good. My hope is you all are helped so much and can pass it on as well to others coming after us. My nurse navigator called this week and she's passing it on at the radiation center to the newbies and said many are trying it. She plans on staying in touch and letting me know how they do. My fingers are crossed for all the ladies walking this path!!!

I went on Monday and received stickers and marks. Go back on the 31st to start radiation. Was told to not use soap to keep the stickers in place. I live in Florida and the heat is unbearable, I have lost 3 of the stickers so far. Worried that their going to be upset, but I've done the best I could.

I begin August 1 and thank you so much for these posts. I am going to try the green tea too. So llamalady, I have a question. I have both caffeinated and decaffeinated green tea sitting in my cupboards - from what I read they both have tannins. Do you think it matters which I use? And are there brands that are particularly good?

So not everyone needs to get tattoos? I have my tattoos, four of them. There are tiny ones between my breasts and at the sides under my arm that are very unobtrusive but the one on my stomach is the biggest and the only one I can see easily! I don't have a date yet for the start of my radiation, I went last Tuesday and they said it takes from 1-2 weeks to set up the appointments. I am just ready to get all the treatment done. Well, I guess I will be taking hormone therapy for 10 YEARS so it will take a while.

Inccmd - I'm not sure if it makes a difference between caffeinated or decaf. I did use regular - not decaf though. The brand I bought was from Food Lion (sure other stores have it too) and it was called STEEP by Bigelow, Organic Pure Green Tea. It's a green colored box. I also have read from some others that used Yogi brand. Again remember to bathe the entire breast, underneath where your bra band is, the arm pit area and the chest up to your collar bone. Also don't forget, in my humble opinion, that of the 3 times a day you do it, that immediate use of the tea straight off the rads table is most important. You won't tell much the first week but just keep with it. Soon you will start to feel the heat in that cotton coming off you from the tea bath. I loved the emu oil for bed. Am convinced it kept my skin nice and moisturized plus full of vitamins and help prevent it from breaking down. Plus the emu oil is not a very heavy "oily" oil. It rubs in nicely and after I rubbed it into my breast/chest I would the rub an excess off on my legs :-)

ShockedAt48 - I hear you! I was so ready to get going that I was actually excited to start rads. Even though I have to take tamoxifen also, I just looked at this as being a big chunk off my list and was happy to be able to slow way down this crazy appointment rollercoaster we're on. I felt like in starting radiation that I was very close to getting some control back over my own life and indeed once I finished that's exactly how I've felt these last 2 weeks - like I have my life back pretty much more under my control and everything feels so much more normal to me.

Annbee - I don't know anything the monitors but my rads was on the right side so maybe that's the difference. Maybe someone else that has info about that will post for you. I'm happy you're getting your supplies ready! You ladies are getting ready to start counting down getting this one behind you!!! I'll be counting down and cheering you for!!!!!!!!!!!

I go to my RO Aug 7th, to be sure I'm healed after 7/18 LO. If all is good simulation on the 10th, start date of rad8/14. Llamalady thanks for the green tea tip. Will do it for sure. I'm having 20 treatments with the last 4 being targeted (probably boosts, as you all have mentioned). I'm having whole breast radiation of my left breast. Was concerned about other organs (heart/lungs), but RO said I am to be positioned on my stomach which will protect them. We discussed both partial breast and proton therapy, but RO felt this was best. Planning on working part-time during radiation, any comments on benefits would be appreciated. Also planning a vacation with DH 3 weeks after I finish, will I have the energy? It's a trip that's been planned for over a year.

TWills - Best of luck tomorrow!!! You'll do great and yes - you get started tomorrow and you're on the count down to being finished!! Let us know how it goes!!!

Mimie - as for fatigue, like everything else, we're all different. I had 16 sessions and I did not experience fatigue. I'm not working outside the home now, but we have a small hobby farm, so my chores each day are mandatory b/c of the animals, garden, pastures to mow etc and they're very physical chores. I kept up with that during my treatments as well as general family/house stuff and felt fine. My last 2 days of treatments I was tired but nothing terrible - just kind of dragging and a little sleepy. But I'm not sure if it was radiation fatigue, just tired of the process, tired of the drive 1 hour each way every day - I just don't know. But other than those last 2 days I was good. The first 2 days after radiation I let myself sleep late in the morning and just rest. I felt like I was just letting all the adrenaline from the beginning of finding the lump to finishing rads just seep out of me. It just felt good to take those 2 mornings and sleep in. I've been fine energy wise since then and this past Thursday was my 2 week finish mark. As a matter of fact I've gone pretty hard this first two weeks out, catching up on some things and just some scheduled family things as well. Stay hydrated and try to eat fairly well and do rest and get good nights sleep as much as you can during treatments. There may be some other ladies on some of the other rads boards discussing fatigue and their experiences. Hopefully w/ 20 it won't really bother you or will be very minimal.

Llamalady I feel exactly like that, I just want to be over the focus of having breast cancer and live normally. I'm not even sure what to say that I have. When I say breast cancer that sounds like I am still infected. Had breast cancer doesn't sound right since I'm still undergoing treatment. I guess I should say that I'm undergoing breast cancer treatment! After my radiation treatment I can say that I'm a breast cancer survivor and try to forget all about it in the day to day acheme of things

Mimie, I had 33 treatments and did have tremendous fatigue. I flew to Denver six days after my last treatment to spend the weekend with my daughter, son-in-law and 15-month-old grandson. I spent three days racing around after him! So I would say you'll be just fine for your trip - go, enjoy and put treatment behind you! Good luck as you get started.

MJ

Hi All -- haven't been to active on any board here, but wants to see all of this one.

I go for simulation on Friday the 4th and will probably start treatment next week. I had bmx on 05 July and still recovering from very invasive surgery through almost up to under collar bone to remove scar tissue from tumor wrapped around my brachial artery/vein/nerve roots.

My RAD will be directing my treatment to that area and he didn't mention any in the breast area, so I'm a bit confused on all, that from what I have read here.

I'm grat duo for the green tea regimen recipe and instructions and will order emu oil today, I guess. I was planning on using bio oil.

My treatments will be 5/week for five weeks. Sounds daunting as I will be 2-1/2 hours from home -- going to tampa as that is where my BS was done and surgeon wants RAD he recommends to do treatment. I will stay in the Hope Lodge. Sounds like a long time but other than 10+ (probably) years of HT, I hope to be done with treatments soon.

I was DX mid Jan with five months of chemo first to shrink tumors.

I pray each day for all going through this very tough illness and pray that an easier form of treatment will become to light soon and/or that no more women will get this terrible disease

Hi All - I started radiation today. I was a bit nervous, especially since my arm was really bothering me during the mapping and dry run through. I still have cording and discomfort in my arm from surgery, back in March. During the mapping I lost feeling in my arm etc. However, today, they had me in position quickly and the radiation was fairly quick. I didn't have any bright lights - just a machine that circled around me. There were no loud noises (certainly nothing like an MRI). They put on Pandora. The oncology nurse I spoke to today at dana farber recommended My Girls Cream (has calendula). My skin does feel slightly irritated like a mild sunburn. I know that will get worse each day.

llamalady - thanks! I will try the tea