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Medical Forum / Diseases and Disorders / Prostate Cancer / July 2006Milestone: Radiation Therapy started today....
Finally! - I went today for my first dose (of 10) of RT. During the simulation and mark-up of two days ago I was tattooed, to assist the lining up for the actual radiation (I'd hoped for an eagle and a Union Jack, but wound up with three dots, one on each hip, and another over my pubic bone) In today's exercise, I was first briefed by one of the technicians, who described the procedure, and advised me on side-effects etc.. Then I changed into the infamous backless gown, and was shown into the treatment room. A three-member team fussed over me, got me down on the hard bed under the machine, and then wrestled with me until i was properly lined up, courtesy of the tattooed dots. It took a while, and I cooperated by not cooperating - they told me it was best not to try to help. The team ran through a series of checks like they were launching the Shuttle, and then vacated the room. I elected to stay behind to see what happened <grin>. The whole thing was over very quickly, and surprised me. The first shot took only about a minute, and then the team came back in and shifted the machine. The first shot was from directly above, and the second from underneath. And then it was over. The hardest part was sitting up again, as my back becomes *cast* very rapidly on such a hard and flat surface. Back again tomorrow at 2 pm, and I see the head Oncologist on Monday week. By way of side effects I'm expecting a number of things: Increased tiredness, either constipation OR diarrhoea OR both (!), potentially painful skin sensation, AND the feeling of sitting on a pineapple will likely get worse before it gets better once more. Paracetomol is said to be sufficient for the general pain, and I've also been advised to use a skin cream if I get *sunburn* in any delicate areas. Another bulletin later, all being well. John, good luck, hope all works well. I see my uro tomorrow (30th) to see about RT (I think......hope....want to get it over with). He'll refer me to an onc, I think the one I'll be using (if indeed I do it here) was present during my surgery. Did they say how long the Se's (constipation or diarrhea) would last? The uro has stated repeatedly he'd like 6 weeks of treatment. 30 I suppose. I'm very concerned about burning. What city are you in? David > Finally! - I went today for my first dose (of 10) of RT. > [quoted text clipped - 39 lines] > > Another bulletin later, all being well. > John, good luck, hope all works well. I see my uro tomorrow (30th) to > see about RT (I think......hope....want to get it over with). He'll [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > he'd like 6 weeks of treatment. 30 I suppose. I'm very concerned about > burning. What city are you in? Drink lots and lots of water. Walk a lot. Get more sleep than usual. Your SEs will be lessened by a factor of 4.81. On June 29 (Arizona time) John wrote, in pertinent part: > Finally! - I went today for my first dose (of 10) of RT. (snip) > A three-member team fussed over me, got me down on the hard bed under > the machine, and then wrestled with me until i was properly lined up, > courtesy of the tattooed dots. It took a while, and I cooperated by > not cooperating - they told me it was best not to try to help. This sounds much like IMRT (Intensity-Modulated RT), which I finished in October '04. Did they use BAT (B-mode Acquisition and Targeting) -- essentially ultrasound -- to pinpoint the exact location of the gland? This is what was done with me, each day. > The whole thing was over very quickly, and surprised me. The first > shot took only about a minute, and then the team came back in and > shifted the machine. The first shot was from directly above, and the > second from underneath. Hmmm. No, that does not sound like IMRT, so I wonder just what it was. 3DCRT, maybe? (snip) > By way of side effects I'm expecting a number of things: Increased > tiredness, either constipation OR diarrhoea OR both (!), potentially [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > also been advised to use a skin cream if I get *sunburn* in any > delicate areas. Please keep us informed. FWIW, my SEs were relatively mild. I was also on ADT, so it's difficult to assign causation for some of the SEs. As for the skin irritation, I was given a gel named "Aquaphor" which worked wonders. Regards, Steve J >Finally! - I went today for my first dose (of 10) of RT. <snip> >By way of side effects I'm expecting a number of things: Increased >tiredness, either constipation OR diarrhoea OR both (!), potentially [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] >Paracetomol is said to be sufficient for the general pain, and I've also >been advised to use a skin cream if I get *sunburn* in any delicate areas. <snip> It's important to carry the same load of water in a "comfortably full" bladder. I got some diarrhoea after the first shot as I hadn't remembered this. (this is to place your prostate in a similar position to where it was when you got the tattoos after the CT Scan.) They generally allow a 10mm concentric border for daily organ movement, and this can cause a blast to the pelvic lymph nodes, dependent on your body shape. (mine got done!) Also, if you're a tad tubby, like me, they increase the dose to do the extra travel to the prostate. It's a fairly INEXACT science, akin to dipping cattle ! 10 mins per cook wo to go LOL. As for creams, I used Canestan, but they told me not to use talcum powder as that would dry me up and may cause burning. I did 23 daily fractions of this last year Mar/Apr. HTH -- Reader to complete... -- Please reply to this ng as my email adress is fake: -- Regards -- CC > Finally! - I went today for my first dose (of 10) of RT. > ... > By way of side effects I'm expecting a number of things: Increased tiredness, either > constipation OR diarrhoea OR both (!), potentially painful skin sensation, AND the > feeling of sitting on a pineapple will likely get worse before it gets better once more. I had 25 sessions of external beam radiation. The side effects never got real bad, and didn't start for me until after the first 10 or so. It's possible that you won't have side effects at all, or that they will be very minor. Good luck with it. I hope it helps your symptoms. Alan Hi John: I finished 36 sessions of radiation via IMRT as salvage treatment. Not sure whether you are doing this a primary treatment or salvage. I was very fortunate had very little SE's (very slight feeling of fatigue). Honestly the worst part was dealing with the full bladder when there was a delay or something in the start of my appointment. SRT seemed heighten my sense or urgency. A couple times I had to get off the table before getting zapped to slightly relieve the pressure so they could put the damn mold on. Then I had a difficult time stopping midway. Other than that it went well and my preliminary stats one month post treatment are encouraging... 0.24 psa vs 0.95 when I started. Good luck to you. Dominic > Finally! - I went today for my first dose (of 10) of RT. > [quoted text clipped - 39 lines] > > Another bulletin later, all being well. Cheers Dominic - my treatment is really salvage, trying to ease the discomfort that the swollen gland is causing. One thing that helps me is that I have a supra-pubic catheter (SPC) fitted, so i don't need to consider bladder state... I didn't think i'd actually get to appreciate the thing, but there it is.... > Hi John: > [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > > Good luck to you. Dominic At my second treatment today I learnt that the machine is a *Varian* liner accelerator, common in the US, and that I'm getting 6 MeV (The machine can go to 18, evidently.) > Finally! - I went today for my first dose (of 10) of RT. <snipped the rest...> > At my second treatment today I learnt that the machine is a *Varian* > liner accelerator, common in the US, and that I'm getting 6 MeV (The > machine can go to 18, evidently.) Kind of counter-intuitive ain't it that putting that much high energy voltage into you makes you tired instead of energizing you :) Incidentally, one day I had my $450 digital camera in my briefcase and made the horrible mistake of taking the briefcase with me into the treatment room out of fear that someone might steal it if I left it in the waiting room. The results were just what you'd expect for cancer. The camera didn't die outright, but it got real flaky and was finished off when I brought it through airport scanners a few times. I tried to convince the goon at the airport to hand inspect my camera but he knew for absolute certain that his xrays wouldn't damage my camera so I could put it through, leave it, or go to jail. Alan Three dots..... Interesting as I had blue racing stripes on each calf. The purpose was to line up to the custom made box that form fitted by body. Couple with a water filled rectal balloon to protect my intestine, I was ready to go. I guess each Radiation Oncologist has their own method. Good luck and many happy PSA draws. gd > Finally! - I went today for my first dose (of 10) of RT. > [quoted text clipped - 39 lines] > > Another bulletin later, all being well. > Finally! - I went today for my first dose (of 10) of RT. Well, today it finishes!! Two weeks gone, and 9 shots later, and I feel awful, but I'm told that's normal. (Reminds me of one of Aesop's fables - I must find it..) As predicted I've become much more tired, and have handed over bowel control to dark forces... I'm getting a lot of rectal pain/discomfort, and the nurse yesterday gave me various remedies to ease things until everything settles down again. The worst part is that I'm farting a lot, and proving the saying *never trust a fart*. What keeps me going right now is that they say this is a) normal, and b) will pass. More later - last shot is in 5 hours, and counting..... As Nike says - just do it! Bev > > Finally! - I went today for my first dose (of 10) of RT. > > [quoted text clipped - 15 lines] > > More later - last shot is in 5 hours, and counting..... Doing it Bev, but my God!! - it's so bloody undignified!! Going to my GP shortly to see if he can get me some relief for my blockage, and then maybe will try to sleep away the weekend... more later..... > As Nike says - just do it! > Bev [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] >> >>More later - last shot is in 5 hours, and counting..... |
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