Hi Leonor, I finished a course of six weeks radiotherapy four weeks ago. This was every week day at the same time. It may have taken 10 - 15 minutes or so and is really nothing to fear. The first time you go you will have about a one hour session where the ?radiographers do mapping, which is where they take measurements of the area that will be treated. They will also mark the area in certain spots with single black dots, which are actually called tattoos and are the size of a pin head, these last forever. I must admit they can hurt just a little to have done, but hey, we have experienced worse. Each time you go in for treatment you are placed in the same position and you must not move at all! You put your arms behind your head and hold on to two handles for the whole time, until you are told to put them down. There is no pain at all and the machine zaps you for a short time, (maybe ??four times) each time. You will find you wait and count each time and get to know the procedure very well. After a short time, maybe a couple of days I'm not sure, your skin will begin to change colour and at times you really can feel the inside of your breast "cooking" a little, this doesn't hurt but feels weird. By the time the weekend comes around you will be looking for a rest, but over that time you can still feel this "cooking" feeling and at times you feel warm (bit like a hot flush). You feel better over the weekend and then the next week begins and it is all replayed over again. I found that towards the end of treatment my underarm started to get red and started to get a little sore, I had only read that it was like sunburn, but by the end of treatment and for about two weeks after (as you are still cooking) it became very red and very sore, and I felt the "like sunburn" was very unde emphasized. After my fifth week of treatment, the procedure changed and the only area that was treated (for a week) was the area where the lump/s were taken out. They use a much smaller machine with, guessing I would say about a 1 & 1/2 inch square diameter. This is great because it gives your underarm a well deserved break. It is for a shorter time and they do this for five days and then it is all over. I myself didn't have any problems with it, the doctors kept asking me how I was coping with the lethargy, but I can honestly say I didn't find it a problem at all. I can honestly say that apart from having my life governed by radiotherapy for six weeks, the "sunburn effect" was worse than I imagined. The nursing staff only ever offered me dressings and solugel, which to me wasn't quite enough to control the pain I had, but hey I survived and there are worse things in life. The worse part was the lymph node scar that had burnt and the bra rubbing on it. I had to go braless toward the end and just had to let "the girls" swing free. When radiation finished I was able to treat the condition myself and what worked for me was bepanthan smothered on at night. It is amazing though that when the burn started to heal, how quickly it did and now everything is fine. The treated "boob" is a little firmer than the other one and maybe a little bigger but all the skin is now fine. I feel that radiotherapy is just another tool to use to help combat this horrendous disease. It is quite okay to go through and from my experience, nothing to be overly worried about. It does rule your life for six weeks and the residual burning can be nasty, but of course everyone copes differently. I guess it is something we just have to do for our own peace of mind.
I hope I haven't woffled on and this has been of some help to you.
Best wishes, Dale xx
