Radiation Therapy Omission

Hi maxis, I’m glad to hear your medical advice seemed reasonable and balanced. Considering your overall health picture and quality of life is paramount to getting the right outcome. 

I’m so sorry to hear How much you are facing! With your own health issues and then caring for your dear very sick husband too. That’s a lot.  I’m holding you both in my heart and wishing for the most positive outcome possible. Life can be cruel, that’s for sure.

I have been reading a post from Tanasha22 on this website about her experience with RT and how the side-effects didn’t show up until months and months later. When after the 6 weeks of treatment she seemed fine, she was simply told by the oncologist to ‘have a good life.’  He was clueless about what she later suffered due to treatment.

Personally, from what you’ve said I’m glad you didn’t pursue RT. It could have left you with serious deficits and added health problems.

There’s a lot of debate as to whether RT is necessary for DCIS, and it generally comes down to a number of things including age, family history, type and stage of the DCIS. I was about to take part in a trial when I was considered to have DCIS and that would have included the hospital sending a sample of my tumour to an overseas lab for testing. As I mentioned I got pulled off due to the invasive cancer finding by the Lab.

Since that time I’ve read and heard numerous cases of the long term damage that RT can cause. I advise anyone to ask questions and seek out why it’s considered necessary, factually including the actual statistical improvement in your specific case, not generalisations.  RT is not to be considered lightly and to be considered only if really necessary.

My own father-in-law had RT  following a finding of oesophagus cancer.  It was necessary and he lived for nearly 5 years afterwards. However, ultimately the RT damaged his oesophagus so badly, that it was ‘tearing like paper’ according to the Hospital he was later admitted to. Because he could not eat, at first solids, then almost anything,  his quality of life suffered tremendously. He lost interest in living, refused having a PEG tube in the stomach and died as a result. 

So the RT bought him some years but it was not without its own life-limiting consequences.

Hugs and more hugs!

Hi Klio​, Bluebell-1​ , maxis​  and Hopeday​ , there seems to be more and more questions being raised within the medical community about the value of RT in certain BC situations. I have included an excerpt below from an online article published in January last Year and there are many scientific articles that have been published in the last couple of years debating the value of radiation in a number of different situations (please read below).

My point is that you are all absolutely right to question the value of RT in your specific cases and get answers directly related to your personal situations. It’s impressive to see more and more women advocating for themselves. I didn’t and I regret it.

“The purpose of radiation is to kill cancer cells in a targeted way. With breast cancer, it is often used after surgery to kill off any cancer cells that may remain in the breast or surrounding area.  But there are three main areas of debate about radiation all with the focus of reducing side effects while maximizing outcomes, says Dr. Chirag Shah, Director of Breast Radiation Oncology at the Cleveland Clinic Cancer Center. There’s the question of whether to radiate the whole breast versus partial breast radiation, there’s debate about whether some patients even need radiation at all, and there’s debate about which radiation techniques offer the best outcomes with the least side effects.”

Hi Klio​ ,

I have been diagnosed (by two rheumatologists) with undifferentiated connective tissue disorder, though my current rheumatologist has some doubts. I am interested to know what information you found about RT and how you navigated being informed enough to make a decision.

I was only diagnosed last week, so have not yet had my first appointment with the surgeon.

Hi Kilo,

I am new person to joining this group chat. Have had surgery on 14th August. My surgery went well with all the tumor successfully removed. However, my Oncologist recommended highly that I have RT and a bone density scan. I recently just completed CT scan as well. Prep for RT. After RT I will be put on Hormone blocking tablets for 5 years. I am so concerned that with so much scans, radiation are passing through my body over short period of time, so rapidly as well, will probably cause so much more damage to my cells that I can't see. Is that healthy process?

I know I haven't felt my normal self since breast cancer diagnosis and post surgery. My wounds is still raw and my breast still hurting. But the nurse at the ICON tell me that there is a window of 4-6 weeks that RT must be done. My worry is that if the cancer is completely removed,  it would make sense to skip RT and go on Hormone blocking tablets.😔 I now understand from reading your comments you need to be over 70 years of age to be allowed that. I am in my 50's.

Hi Kilo 

I weighed up RT omission for a different reason and chose not to go ahead with it. I had early breast cancer it was a slow growing 5mm mass and calcifications. My surgeon got good clearance with both after a lumpectomy. My oncologist recommended I take Anastrazole for 5 years and I am doing that. My Radiation technician told me I had 90 % chance of no return without radiotherapy and 96% chance of no return with radiotherapy. He also said there was a study done on early stage, low risk, oestrogen positive, slow growing cancers which says you can omit radiotherapy in patients over 65 in the USA and UK I think, I was in this category but, In Australia you must be over 70 from memory. I was already concerned about possible side effects of RT on my heart and lung. So having that information I felt comfortable choosing no radiotherapy. My surgeon said I made a reasonable decision.

Do talk to your specialists again and see what they recommend, they are all there for you to get your best outcome. I hope all goes well.