Hello 👋 community
I was diagnosed with breast cancer, and while it has been surgically removed, I’m now entering the next phase of treatment. I would like to know if anyone has experience with partial radiotherapy and what side effects—both short-term and long-term—you may have encountered. I'm feeling a bit anxious about this process.
Hi larazon​
I had a lumpectomy, followed by Radiotherapy - they target the immediate surgery area and it is very accurate. So only my surgery site (which was around the nipple area) was 'targeted' .... the radiation is used to mop up any randoms that may not have been removed in the surgery - so a definite benefit to have done, I reckon.
I had 4 weeks of Mon-Fri Rads, plus 2 boosters at the end .... I was able to have mine in the 'face down' position, and it was targeted from underneath by the Rads machine! Most have it 'face up'.
I had some redness (and warmth) in the targeted area - but applying lotions after each session & again in the evening, helped reduce the redness ... I had a bit of skin 'flaking' - but no real peeling. I had the odd 'shooting pain' and the area was a bit itchy now & then, but that all settled down. I continued with the lotions for another 4 weeks after finishing treatment, as the rads 'continues' to work on the area for a while.
Some people can feel fatigued during and after the treatment, but I didn't have that.
To be honest, I found the radiation to be the easiest of my 3 treatments (the other being my surgery and after rads, the Aromatase Inhibitors (AI tablets).
So please, don't get too anxious about it. The staff are very caring & do their best to put you at ease ... and the actual treatment usually only takes about 15mins ..... tho sometimes the initial 'setting up' may take a little while.
Take care & all the best xx
