I have my first appointment with my oncologist this week I am Going to be receiving radiotherapy not quite sure what the first consultation will involve Anybody advise me please x
Hi Maggie
Presumably you’ve had all the necessary tests/surgery for them to have arrived at the conclusion that radiotherapy is your way forward? If that’s the case, I don’t think any nasty little tests will be waiting to hijack you so this will be a face-to-face discussion about your diagnosis, how you will benefit from radiotherapy and what the rest of your treatment plan will entail. This is the time for you to go armed with all your questions (on paper, as the brain tends to be less reliable when there’s an element of fear).
Think very carefully about how much you want to know and how much it’s necessary to know because oncologists talk a different language sometimes where words we have taken for granted in the past take on a whole new significance and many of us go away and fret, commit the cardinal sin of googling and then end up even more worried! If you have further questions or doubts, ask your breast care nurse or one of the nurses at the number above (they are marvellous) or even ask in the forum for opinions - but please don’t google anything. I was offered the opportunity to look at the statistics and accepted. Fortunately I was in a brain fog so I took nothing in but it was hard for my husband and caused him a lot of long-term stress After that, I adopted the approach of just listening.
You’ll have a preliminary appointment with a breast care nurse in radiology before treatment when you can ask about the practicalities (I found it all a very smooth ride after chemo but others find it hard, so you have no way of knowing how it will be for you) and then that’s it - assume the position every day for the next three weeks and moisturise, moisturise, moisturise!
I wish you all the best and hope your experience is as simple as mine was x