December 14, 2010 - Radiation

I started my daily radiation treatments yesterday.  I wanted to be able to go at 9:15 every day, so I'd have plenty of time to get to the shop to open at 10AM.  But the best they could do was to schedule me at 9:45 - so I can't open until 10:30 every day.  I'll need to change my Hours of Business sign.

So, every day I go to the oncology clinic and sit in the waiting room until they call me.  Tuesday is a day when all they are doing all day is radiations - no consultations.  So everyone in the waiting room is just waiting for their 15 minutes with the ray gun.

When I get into the radiation room, my "pillow" (not to be confused with My Pillow, the greatest pillow in the world, created right here in Carver, MN) is waiting for me on the table.  It's a mold that was taken of my head (positioned to the side) and arms (up over my head) so that each time I go for a treatment, I'm in the exact same position I was in when they took the initial measurements.  They take a few minutes to position me on the table so that my little freckle-sized tattoos are positioned exactly where they need them, then I get a series of blasts from the ray gun.

When I say "they," I'm referring to Molly and Julie, the technicians who operate that machine.  They're the most cheerful people I've ever met, constantly using words like "perfect," "great," and "awesome" when lining me up for my blasts.

I get four blasts, each from a different location, radiating my entire left breast as well as lymph nodes in my neck.  There's nothing to see, and I don't feel a thing.  But eventually (after a couple of weeks) these treatments begin to add up and I will start feeling the symptoms of severe sunburn, like tingling, pink skin, burning, red skin, possibly peeling, etc.  For this reason, they recommend that I apply 100% aloe gel to the area every day, even twice a day - or more.

Another side effect is fatigue, although Dr. Sperduto (pictured, left) didn't think the fatigue from radiation would be as great as the fatigue I experienced from chemo.  We'll have to see.

According to Dr. Sperduto, this radiation will do some irreparable damage to a small portion of my left lung, which is "in the way" of the blasts, but I probably won't even notice.