So many to finishers which is great to read. Nipple and seroma sore but manageable at the moment and nothing major from the tamoxifen either yet which is great too. Good luck tomorrow everyone 
Just a question. Does every radiotherapy unit have a bell to ring? Mine has one and it says to ring three times after you’ve finished your rads!
Nothing on my chemo or rads wards x
What a great idea xx
Congratulations Jayne on finishing at last - virtual bells have been rung!
There were no bells at my hospital. It wouldn’t be appropriate, because the unit treats patients with all sorts of cancers, including people having palliative radiotherapy. Several of the people I spoke to were having treatment for more serious conditions than me, with much less certain outcomes. It was quite sobering and made me realise how lucky I am.
Kezzar - you are doing well so far, so the E45 must suit you. It’s amazing how different the policies are about what creams to use and when. At the hospital I went to, they were adamant I should use aqueous cream and nothing else, and that I shouldn’t apply it less than 2 hours before treatment.
Snail - hope the sore areas don’t get any worse, but if you are concerned you can discuss this at the review. They may give you some special gel if they think you will need it.
Thanks loads for your kind thoughts Jo Jo . they are very much appreciated.and well done and best wishes to Jayne for finishing rads,hope thing continue to go well take care xx
Thank you Helena and Dawn! Loved my bells! Xxxx
Thanks to everybody for the good wishes - right back at you! Be well! Xxxx
Lady bowler finishnsatenis scheduled for 12th xx
Thanks for your kind comments Jo Jo just feeling a bit down at mo. What with just finishing my rads I should be on the up and up but feel very tired and down and upset at times but hopefully this will pass soon. Phoned my breast nurse today and didnt manage to get across how bad I was feeling as she said she was pleased to hear I was doing so well when before she went off the phone,so I ended up feeling even worse. but will be going out with friends for a walk later so hopefully I will feel better after that… Take care everyone. xxx
I still have the itchy rash across the booster area unfortunately. I thought it was starting to fade, but it isn’t and if anything is slightly worse today, so I am going to ring the hospital in the morning for advice on what to do.
JoJo - how are your sore patches and rash now? I have been plastering on the aqueous cream but it doesn’t seem to have helped with the rash so I think something else is needed.
Kezzar - it’s normal to be a bit pink at this stage. I am sure they are keeping an eye on it but if it starts to get sore, tell the radiographers next time you are treated.
Snail - looks like virtual bell ringing on 12 May then. Hope your review went well.
Alleck - how did you get on today - what did they say about the reaction?
Corinna - it’s now a fortnight since I finished, and I feel sleepy sometimes, but it is just for short spells. I will start to fall asleep in front of the telly or when reading, but if I then decide to go and have a nap, I find I don’t sleep for very long. I don’t feel down about anything except the rash, because I have kept busy. I am looking forward to the holiday next week and going back to work afterwards, but concerned the rash could spoil things if I can’t get it under control.
Pippa - glad your rash is better, mine isn’t, unfortunately. Try massaging the scar with moisturiser to see if it helps. My scar was a bit sore when I finished the 15 general rads, but it is better now, and I think the extra moisturiser and massaging helped.
So had my review today and she forgot me so was in at 3.30 not 2! She did apologise. Not really much use apart from giving me some cool patches for my nipple. My skin is really hot and sore so I’m going to resort to an old Arab trick of my dad’s for sunburn and put natural live yoghurt all over tonight. When I was a kid it was brilliant and infact women said there is no evidence for some creams being better than others just no sls. So ladies I will let you know how the yoghurt goes xx
Hi Snail are you drinking enough, perhaps hydration is the issue. Hope this helps
Thanks Katy I do have to remember to drink plenty. Sometimes I’m really thirsty but normally not. X
Corinna and Alison - thanks for asking about the rash.
Corinna - I hope you are feeling a bit more positive now and that you haven’t got anything similar. I think getting out and doing normal things helps more than anything else.
Alison - glad it was better today. The quicker they can get you in position the better because the sooner you will be out of there. Hopefully you will be fine for now, and you have the long weekend to recover, but keep an eye on it next week.
Snail - what a disappointment. I was at least given some gel to be used if the skin broke down. Moisturisers like aqueous cream don’t actually do anything other than help reduce dryness and cool the skin - they admitted as much this morning. I hope the yoghourt helps (can’t do any harm), let us know if it does. I found it helped to drink plenty of water in the morning before going to the hospital, and to take a small bottle of water with me to the hospital every day. If you put your drinking water into a measuring jug or use a half pint (250ml) drinking glass, it is easier to keep tabs on how much you are drinking.
I rang the hospital this morning about the rash. They said people often have a reaction like this a couple of weeks after radiotherapy finishes, and that it should go away on its own after a week or so.
In the meantime they advised me to carry on with the aqueous cream (which isn’t really helping and may be making it worse), and switch to the gels if the skin breaks. They also suggested applying the Flamazine cream I have been given in case of burns (sparingly) as this may help with the itching.
I have carried on applying the aqueous cream all over the zapped area, plus a small amount of Flamazine to the area with the rash. I also started taking antihistamines because I acquired a couple of insect bites in the garden yesterday (only noticed them this morning) - I am hoping they might help with the rash too.
So far the itching does seem to have reduced a bit, but it’s early days. I will let you know how I get on.
Have a good Bank Holiday weekend everyone, and I hope the weather and radiotherapy effects are kind.
Hi Ladies
I hope you’re all having a nice break over the long weekend. I’m hoping this gives the skin a break.
So I’ve now had 5 sessions, 10 more to go. I’ve had no skin reaction at all, I’ve been keeping up my gym routine and feel absolutely fine! Maybe a bit more tired than normal in the evenings, but I didn’t sleep well last week, so I think it’s more that than anything else.
I have a glass of wine this evening! No one has told me not to, so I hope that’s OK? Long may the lack of side effects continue! Or is it too early for them to kick in?
I’m using Diprobase cream 3-4 times a day. I’ve given up on bras/cropped tops etc, unless I’m in the gym; I’m quite small so not desperate for support most of the time.
Have a great weekend all, take it easy!
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So if you use emojis you get warnings about emotional content! Weird!!
Yes, it is weird. I was using different emojis from my phone which didn’t do that, but when I try to use them now I get a message saying ‘An Unexpected Error has occurred.’
Hi All hoping everyone is ok? Im 10 days post rads today. my skin is still a bit dodgy on my breast. It has big brown sort of spots on it particularly under my breast but think this may just be part of the healing process as its still sore.
Im still feeling very tired and sometimes fall asleep on the settee in the afternoon. I am trying to get out though and do something every day as I think this helps me emotionally and would get depressed if I stayed in all the time.
My manager is going to phone me tomorrow so Im feeling anxious about that as still dont feel ready to go back to work . Also have an occ health appointment on wednesday which Im worrying about. feel pressured to go back to work but def dont feel ready yet . Too tired and Im still sore from rads and under my arm where I had my lymph nodes removed is still stiff, but continuing to do the exercises for this. sometimes I feel I will never feel ok again but know I am lucky as Im at the end of my treatment and should feel happy about that and it could have been a lot worse and Im grateful for that too, but sometimes still feel really down . wishing everyone all the best during their treatment hugs xxx
Hello everyone - hope you had a pleasant Bank Holiday weekend.
Pippa - hope you are feeling better and the pains and soreness are continuing to subside. It is apparently not uncommon for people to have a delayed reaction a week or so after finishing. I was told that if you get such a reaction, it usually ‘peaks’ (is at its worst) about a fortnight after finishing, and then it will gradually get better the following week.
Corinna - thank you for asking about my rash. I am pleased to report that it has nearly gone now. The insect bites are more stubborn so I am still taking the antihistamines. I don’t know whether the Flamazine and antihistamines have helped, or whether the rash would have gone away on its own anyway. When I called the hospital last Friday (just over a fortnight after finishing) I was told it had probably ‘peaked’ and would gradually get better over the next week, which it has done. The skin never broke, I just had a patch of inflamed skin with red blister-like spots where the boosters were, which has gradually faded.
I have had the brown spots as well, but only on my nipple. They are sort of like little scabs, which eventually dry up and flake off. Mine have nearly all gone now, so yours should do the same. I hope your rash will also start getting better soon. As long as the skin isn’t broken you can carry on using moisturiser, but if it breaks down, you probably need to get some Intrasite gel from the hospital or your GP.
I am continuing to do the exercises as well, as I was told to carry on for 6 weeks after radiotherapy. They are becoming a chore now, because I have had full movement back in my arm and shoulder for some time, and I don’t think I really need to do them anymore.
I am a bit tired too, but this has as much to do with the antihistamines as the radiotherapy. The ones I have to take for the insect bite make you drowsy. I managed a 3 mile walk with some friends this morning though, so I can’t be that bad.
I was supposed to have an occupational health appointment this morning, but they telephoned just as we were about to set off to say it was cancelled. As we are going on holiday on Thursday, they won’t be able to rearrange it until we get back. It is getting beyond a joke now - I actually want to return to work and am fit enough to start working part time, but every time I have tried to arrange it, I have been prevented! I’ll be lucky to be back by June at this rate.
Rooty - I was also told to use aqueous cream only, so that was all I used throughout radiotherapy, and I have continued with it since. It is a bit thin so you really have to plaster it on and it takes a while to rub in. It’s not easy to take it to the hospital to put on after treatment either, because it comes in large tubs so you have to decant some into a jar. Other than that it is fine, and does the job. At the first sign of any skin problems, tell the radiographers immediately. If your skin breaks down you can’t use aqueous cream, so they will have to give you some special gel to use instead.
Keep up the gentle exercising as well, because it’s the best way to fight fatigue. You sometimes have to force yourself, but you feel better if you do make the effort.
Best wishes to everyone being zapped this week - I guess we should all move over to the May thread now.