Hyperbaric oxygen therapy during radiation?
Forgive me if I've missed some previous thread on this, as I am new to the forum, but I am having a heck of a time trying to find information on this. I've found quite a few people talking about using it effectively after radiation, or around surgery, to alleviate skin/tissue related issues, and some research regarding it's safety as it relates to stimulating cancer growth/recurrence, but nothing yet about using it sort of prophylactically during radiation.
I've finished my chemotherapy already (miraculously a PCR on an 8cm+ TNBC tumor, thanks to an amazing oncologist), and had a bilateral mastectomy with subpectoral tissue expanders about a week ago. I seem to be healing well, but I am leaning pretty strongly towards having a prepectoral reconstruction, and as such I am concerned with maintaining the quality of my skin flaps.
As I understand it, the primary cause of skin/tissue damage during radiation is due to bloodflow issues, and HOT could potentially help preempt these sorts of issues if used at the same time as radiation. My thinking is that it's easier to prevent these issues than it is to attempt to fix them after the fact, and I can't imagine that I'm the only one who has gone down this rabbit hole.
Haven't got a chance to talk to my radiologist, although I will be picking his/her brain on the matter when I do.
Please feel free to correct me if you find any incorrect assumptions, but I would love to hear from folks who have tried this, or if anyone has any links to research on the topic that would also be appreciated. Hell, I'd even be interested to hear educated guesses on why this is a good/bad idea if that's all that's out there.
Thanks in advance for any help.
Comments
-
Here is a link to the page of posts that come up when you type "hyperbaric" into the search function. There are some members that are still active here that posted in some of them. If their posts don't contain the info you are looking for you can always private message them directly.
-
I did HBOT during radiation. Did it during chemo too in conjunction with high dose C.
HBOT was VERY good to get healed after radiation.
No ongoing problem, no LE, no issues. I had whole breast rads. But I only had a LX prior to rads, so not sure about the surgery aspect,
There is something called pentoxifylline which I took after rads and that is supposed to prevent fibrosis.
-
Santabarbarian, good to hear someone else has tried this. A follow up question, if you have a moment: how often did you go and do the HBOT? What factors or information contributed to that decision, or was it something that was prescribed?
It's a bit pricey, at least locally, and I've seen people reference anything from 1-2x per week all the way to 5x a week. Leaning towards the lower end of the range at least until or if a specific issue crops up, but frequency isn't something I've put a lot of time into figuring out just yet.
-
I did 2 x per week during chemo & IVC and then dropped back. During rads I went once a week. After rads I went 2-3 x a week for 2 weeks to heal my skin
-
Hi,
I posted my experience somewhere else but saw this thread and decided to post here.
I had BMX 2 years ago, 2 expanders, chemo and then rads on L side. Had previous rads on R side (lumpectomy and chemo in 2005) with no issues until expander , then I had open wounds. Had expander removed, lat flap Dec 2019, and now getting ready for a new expander with new surgeon.
This surgeon recommended 20 HBOT before surgery and then 10 after surgery to help with healing. I've had 10 so far, 10 more before surgery in October. I go every day. I'm hoping for the best, for no open wounds after expander/exchange. The L side is fine skin wise, just capsule contracture of implant so that will be exchanged eventually, probably when I have R expander exchanged. My new surgeon seems experienced with skin issues whereas my previous surgeon who did my lat flap is less experienced as he didn't suggest the HBOT.
Jaybird~
Categories
- All Categories
- 679 Advocacy and Fund-Raising
- 289 Advocacy
- 68 I've Donated to Breastcancer.org in honor of....
- Test
- 322 Walks, Runs and Fundraising Events for Breastcancer.org
- 5.6K Community Connections
- 282 Middle Age 40-60(ish) Years Old With Breast Cancer
- 53 Australians and New Zealanders Affected by Breast Cancer
- 208 Black Women or Men With Breast Cancer
- 684 Canadians Affected by Breast Cancer
- 1.5K Caring for Someone with Breast cancer
- 455 Caring for Someone with Stage IV or Mets
- 260 High Risk of Recurrence or Second Breast Cancer
- 22 International, Non-English Speakers With Breast Cancer
- 16 Latinas/Hispanics With Breast Cancer
- 189 LGBTQA+ With Breast Cancer
- 152 May Their Memory Live On
- 85 Member Matchup & Virtual Support Meetups
- 375 Members by Location
- 291 Older Than 60 Years Old With Breast Cancer
- 177 Singles With Breast Cancer
- 869 Young With Breast Cancer
- 50.4K Connecting With Others Who Have a Similar Diagnosis
- 204 Breast Cancer with Another Diagnosis or Comorbidity
- 4K DCIS (Ductal Carcinoma In Situ)
- 79 DCIS plus HER2-positive Microinvasion
- 529 Genetic Testing
- 2.2K HER2+ (Positive) Breast Cancer
- 1.5K IBC (Inflammatory Breast Cancer)
- 3.4K IDC (Invasive Ductal Carcinoma)
- 1.5K ILC (Invasive Lobular Carcinoma)
- 999 Just Diagnosed With a Recurrence or Metastasis
- 652 LCIS (Lobular Carcinoma In Situ)
- 193 Less Common Types of Breast Cancer
- 252 Male Breast Cancer
- 86 Mixed Type Breast Cancer
- 3.1K Not Diagnosed With a Recurrence or Metastases but Concerned
- 189 Palliative Therapy/Hospice Care
- 488 Second or Third Breast Cancer
- 1.2K Stage I Breast Cancer
- 313 Stage II Breast Cancer
- 3.8K Stage III Breast Cancer
- 2.5K Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
- 13.1K Day-to-Day Matters
- 132 All things COVID-19 or coronavirus
- 87 BCO Free-Cycle: Give or Trade Items Related to Breast Cancer
- 5.9K Clinical Trials, Research News, Podcasts, and Study Results
- 86 Coping with Holidays, Special Days and Anniversaries
- 828 Employment, Insurance, and Other Financial Issues
- 101 Family and Family Planning Matters
- Family Issues for Those Who Have Breast Cancer
- 26 Furry friends
- 1.8K Humor and Games
- 1.6K Mental Health: Because Cancer Doesn't Just Affect Your Breasts
- 706 Recipe Swap for Healthy Living
- 704 Recommend Your Resources
- 171 Sex & Relationship Matters
- 9 The Political Corner
- 874 Working on Your Fitness
- 4.5K Moving On & Finding Inspiration After Breast Cancer
- 394 Bonded by Breast Cancer
- 3.1K Life After Breast Cancer
- 806 Prayers and Spiritual Support
- 285 Who or What Inspires You?
- 28.7K Not Diagnosed But Concerned
- 1K Benign Breast Conditions
- 2.3K High Risk for Breast Cancer
- 18K Not Diagnosed But Worried
- 7.4K Waiting for Test Results
- 603 Site News and Announcements
- 560 Comments, Suggestions, Feature Requests
- 39 Mod Announcements, Breastcancer.org News, Blog Entries, Podcasts
- 4 Survey, Interview and Participant Requests: Need your Help!
- 61.9K Tests, Treatments & Side Effects
- 586 Alternative Medicine
- 255 Bone Health and Bone Loss
- 11.4K Breast Reconstruction
- 7.9K Chemotherapy - Before, During, and After
- 2.7K Complementary and Holistic Medicine and Treatment
- 775 Diagnosed and Waiting for Test Results
- 7.8K Hormonal Therapy - Before, During, and After
- 50 Immunotherapy - Before, During, and After
- 7.4K Just Diagnosed
- 1.4K Living Without Reconstruction After a Mastectomy
- 5.2K Lymphedema
- 3.6K Managing Side Effects of Breast Cancer and Its Treatment
- 591 Pain
- 3.9K Radiation Therapy - Before, During, and After
- 8.4K Surgery - Before, During, and After
- 109 Welcome to Breastcancer.org
- 98 Acknowledging and honoring our Community
- 11 Info & Resources for New Patients & Members From the Team