Vitamins during radiation?

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Whatjusthappened
Whatjusthappened Member Posts: 283
edited June 2019 in Radiation Therapy - Before, During, and After

Hi all, 

I just completed my 20th treatment (out of 33 total) and everyone was commenting on how good my skin still looked, and how most people don't look as good this far in.  I started thinking about all the vitamins I take, which include several antioxidants.  I have been taking them for years, so I don't give much thought to it any more.  Anyway, I started reading some opposing studies about whether or not antioxidants decrease the effectiveness of radiation therapy.  I'm thinking I should have stopped taking them before starting therapy, but no one really asked me about what vitamins I took and I didn't think to mention it.  

Has anyone been told to stop taking/ keep taking supplements?  I'm concerned that I might have inadvertently decreased the effectiveness of my therapy.

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  • TWills
    TWills Member Posts: 679
    edited May 2019

    I had the same concerns, so many conflicting opinions out there. I just erred on the side of caution and stopped antioxidants. Although I think the dosage would have to be quite astronomical to interfere with the amount of radiation we get. My RO kinda said the same thing. I think thatsthe problem sometimes, we read or hear an opinion that is way to general and we have to assume.

    About the skin condition, it’s most common for the majority of the visible damage to happen the weeks and months following rads.

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  • Whatjusthappened
    Whatjusthappened Member Posts: 283
    edited May 2019

    Thank you TWills, that's a bit reassuring. I figure I'll quit taking the supplements for the rest of my treatments anyway. My skin started to blister a bit today, so I might've spoken too soon.

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  • TWills
    TWills Member Posts: 679
    edited May 2019

    Hopefully not, you never know how your skin will react. Hoping for the best for you:)


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  • buttonsmachine
    buttonsmachine Member Posts: 930
    edited May 2019

    My Dr told me that radiation works partly through "oxidative stress" on the cancer cells. So that's why antioxidants might not be good during radiation.

    But as others have pointed out, there's a lot of conflicting information on that. It'd probably be good to tell your Dr about the vitamins, but don't worry too much.

    Congrats on being close to the end! Best wishes.

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  • spiralforest
    spiralforest Member Posts: 31
    edited May 2019

    I have my dr. (or rather the nurse) a list of supplements I take. She didn't seem to care and wondered why I even gave her that info. No one asked about my diet either. What type of antioxidants do you take? I take a few vitamins/minerals and I take quercetin, for allergies, turmeric and fish oil. But certainly not in any huge amount. I drink a greens powder thing and I drink matcha tea once in the morning. They didn't ask me what food or tea I drink or anything like that. I can't imagine it could make the radiation less effective unless it was in huge doses. Just my guess.

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  • Whatjusthappened
    Whatjusthappened Member Posts: 283
    edited May 2019
    Thanks buttonsmachine for the well wishes!

    Spiralforest, the ones I was most concerned about that I take are vitamin c (500 mg) and vitamin e (400 iu), as those are both strong antioxidants. Some other supplements I take that I've seen mentioned in various sites are vit d, b6, fish oil, and coq10. Those last ones aren't really antioxidants so I'm not really sure about the reasoning. I did mention it to my nurses and they said if the patient brings it up the RO will generally tell them to stop taking antioxidants, but he doesn't generally bring it up. I guess he doesn't consider it to be a big deal.


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  • AutismMom1
    AutismMom1 Member Posts: 20
    edited June 2019

    I just finished 28 of 33 treatments, only the boosts left. I take calcium, Vitamin D, Magnesium, a probiotic and Quercetin. When I asked the RO about vitamins he said try to not take any more than the recommended daily allowance such as the amount in a multi vitamin. But otherwise he did not care what I was taking. I also read how antioxidants might actually "heal" or protect the cancer cells radiation was trying to kill, so I was concerned. I had read some studies on Resveratrol and high dose vitamin C, but I wanted to wait until after radiation to start those.

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