DIPH Radiation for Breast Cancer

Hi nc, I had no ida what DIPH radiation was until I googled it---"Deep inspiration breath hold (DIBH) – Utilized for left-sided breast cancer radiotherapy to protect against long-term radiation damage to the heart." I had this protocol and it was really easy and the nurses told me I did a good job with it. You just hold your breath for a very short while (it's easy) while they radiate. I believe its also called gated. My radiation was done 9 years ago and I have no problems with my heart.

I did it two years ago and it really was not the big deal I was expecting. The longest I had to hold my breath was 17-18 seconds, and if for some reason you slip or have to stop, the machine will automatically shut off. When you resume you only have to do it for the time remaining. My memory was I got four different zaps, the long one (which wasn't all that long), one that was 11-12 seconds, and two more that were only 4-5 seconds each. I never did mess up--it was surprisingly easy.