To do radiation or not
I saw the radiation oncologist today and she of course recommends I do radiotherapy. Now just 3 more rounds of chemo and in two weeks I'm finished. Surgery In 5 weeks which be a mastectomy with imm...
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Like the others my main issue with radiation was the inconvenience of daily treatment for 6 weeks. It was much much MUCH easier than chemotherapy. I know that fatigue is an issue for some people but my fatigue was from chemo and during radiation I felt better every week.
I have very sensitive fair skin with freckles. I always burn in the sun. My first 5 weeks were easy - just a little bit of redness. By my second last day I had a burnt area around my scar where they did the boost dose or whatever it was called. This burn got worse during the next week after I had finished which was a bit scary because you go from seeing therapists and nurses every day to NOTHING! I went to my GP (who was closer than the radiation clinic) and she thought it was ok and by the end of the week it was gone. The main problem was that I couldn't really see it properly to decide whether it was infected or what? All I needed was a bit of reassurance and to know that I was doing the right things.
So for me 7 days with a bit of a burnt area was definitely worth the reduction in my recurrence risk. I wore a soft cotton crop top instead of a bra with a loose fitting cotton tshirt. Use the moisturisers that they recommend and check with the nurses if you are concerned about your skin.
Good luck.
I have very sensitive fair skin with freckles. I always burn in the sun. My first 5 weeks were easy - just a little bit of redness. By my second last day I had a burnt area around my scar where they did the boost dose or whatever it was called. This burn got worse during the next week after I had finished which was a bit scary because you go from seeing therapists and nurses every day to NOTHING! I went to my GP (who was closer than the radiation clinic) and she thought it was ok and by the end of the week it was gone. The main problem was that I couldn't really see it properly to decide whether it was infected or what? All I needed was a bit of reassurance and to know that I was doing the right things.
So for me 7 days with a bit of a burnt area was definitely worth the reduction in my recurrence risk. I wore a soft cotton crop top instead of a bra with a loose fitting cotton tshirt. Use the moisturisers that they recommend and check with the nurses if you are concerned about your skin.
Good luck.