Radiation and Weight Loss

I did lose a bit of weight during radiation, but not more than a couple of pounds.  I was cycling too, so this may not be the norm.  By "cycling", I mean 20-30 mile training rides 2x per week.

They weighed me weekly.

The big thing to watch out for is conversion of lean muscle to fat which makes you more apt to gain weight.  This often happens during chemo (because most patients don't get much exercise).  However, the effects aren't seen until later.

So, if you can do some sort of aerobic and also toning exercise, you will be ahead of this curve.

Good luck.

I got weighed all the time and had to see a Nutritionist when they thought I might be losing, but it was mainly because I had lost a lot of weight during chemo and was skinny.  But how much tissue there is make a big difference in how they plan out the radiation, so it's easy to see how they wouldn't want someone changing much for that reason during treatment.  You don't want the maximum dose going somewhere other than the layer at risk.

I was actually told to eat caloric foods during radiation so that it would help keep up my energy and fight fatigue.  Only two weeks left and I feel great.  I know the fatigue might be coming, but so far so good!

What about gaining weight? I lost a lot of weight before I started radiation, because of Tamoxifen SE. First, I had trouble not losing more, but now I am well on my way to my original weight ... which is good, but is it a problem during radiation? I have gained 2 kilos so far and maybe it will be one or two more. I feel that I need the nutrition.

I was told to increase my intake, with the emphasis being on high protein foods. I tried, but my weight stayed the same. I'm thin so I thought they just didn't want me to lose?? Not sure what would have happened if I gained. Would the settings on the machine still have been good?

I gained 5 pounds when diagnosed and through all the testing and surgery. Then during radiation I lost the 5 pounds because it makes you lose your appetite. That 5 pound loss was after simulation. I have 6 more sessions. I wonder if the radiologist reads the films daily or if they can tell the simulation is off. Even if they don't consider 5 pounds too much how do they know that most of it didn't come off the breast? One more thing to worry about.

I saw my radiologist this morning and asked about losing weight while undergoing radiation. She wasn’t concerned at all. While that might make a difference if it was another organ, she said,for the breast she didn’t think it mattered. I think it’s an easier target. I’m 5’5”, 150 pounds, breast size 38B-C (probably B on the one that’s had 3 lumpectomies!) if that’s any help, and I asked about losing 5-6 pounds during that time. So I think you can cross that off your worry list!