I am not having chemo. My WLE and SNB scars are healing nicely no real pain but i have noticed my breast is suddenly sensative to chemicals (had to rewash my bra in non bio, no perfume etc)
So I was wondering how long do people normally wait between the op and the start of rads? Is it a good idea to delay it a bit and get your boob and your general overall fitness better??
I have an urgent appointment with the onc next week, not to rush treatment but to get the treatment period in my diary and if possible adjust my gigging schedule to be a bit less demanding during that time. So it would be good information to have before i talk to her.
NICE guidance says it should start within 31 days of last surgery, but that is guidance not out and out law, because you need to recover well from surgery before they start.
Ignore me completely - that’s chemo. Must look up NICE guidelines and take another look. Brain has disappeared for the day.
That’s where I got my stats from too Choccie of 31 days.
So most of you waited about 8 weeks? I’m going to meet the surgeon soon, with a view to breast conserving thingy in 4 weeks. Add 8? weeks to that, then 4 for rads and then recovery. I thought i’d be at work way before then. Bum!
seems to me its 6-8 weeks. I think i will ask how quickly growing the invasive cells were. if it is quite slow i will ask what is the longest it is safe to leave it. That way my breast can get as healthy as possible and i can get as fit as possible. the doc said the fitter you are the less side effects there are. If she says 31 days I will point out that lots of ladies on her are 6-8 weeks and ask what that would mean in my case.
I wonder if there is any correation between how sore you get and how long after surgery it started
I’ve got exact guidelines at work (so can’t quite) because I was complaining they were making me wait too long. I think it is something like 4 weeks in the NICE guidelines and 6 weeks in SIGN (Scottish). But as CM said ‘guidelines’ are not law, not even targets and seem to be ignored when convenient. My first letter gave me date of 12 weeks then I complained and it was moved to 10.
I had to wait ages. Seemed to get quicker once I complained!
I had my 2nd WLE on 16/11/10. went for results on 01/12/10 told I would be referred to Onc for RT; appt should be in New Year.
New Year arrived no appt; chased them up via BCN mid Jan. I’d been overlooked; Onc appt within 2 days to discuss.
Agreed I should go ahead a copule of days later. Told planning should be in 2 weeks as simulator being serviced. No appt; chased again; none got back to me. BCN returned call she was hitting head against brick wall unable to find out what was going on.
I complained in writing quoting Nice guidlines. You need to be healed up from surgery but should start treatment within 31 days of decision for RT being made. I was now 3 months post Op.
Onc called me following my complaint; simulator being replaced & would be out of action 4 weeks. Confirmed delay would not effect the effectiveness (still not completly convinced on that)if treatment given within 6 months. Anyway due to other complaints as well money found to do the planning on a CT scan machine & treatment went ahead on 1 march. Exactly 4 MONTHS after my op results were known.
I can’t fault my treatment or the staff; but thankfully with DCIS I’m not as worried as if it had been invasive; but only time will tell if the long delay has in fact reduced the effectiveness or not. I can only at present accept my Onc’s word that it hasn’t.
Don’t be afraid of making a pest of yourself. I wish I’d realised about the Nice guidlines as I would of been chasing before Xmas for my Onc appt and may have received Rt sooner; then with demand on resources probably not.
ah! so the guidline is 31 days after having made the decision to use radiotherapy so you add 2 week to that for the WLE results to come through, so that is about 7 weeks.
Personally i am in no huge rush. I cannot beleive a couple of weeks is going to make that much difference cos my cancer cells are so small that it did not show on any of the scans. I would prefer to get a 10am slot and if I have to wait a few weeks longer to get that then so be it. And anyway I will have more chance to get fit and prepare my body for the onlsaught. I suppose it is different for people who want to get back to work or have more invasive cancers
I am hoping if my margins are clear (knowing my luck they wont be)!! but if they are clear, I have told them I don’t want my rads to the middle of September when I get back from a much needed holiday in Kos!!
