Started my rads yesterday and woke up this morning with a tender red breast. I didn’t think the affects would happen so quickly. Has anyone else experienced this . Went to clinic to day and I’ve been given a cool gel patch to put on to cool me down . The clatterbridge cancer centre have been brilliant.
Dear Chris61
Yes, your experience with early sessions sounds similar to mine - I finished my 20 sessions last Monday - first week (end August) the area was very dark speckly pink rather than red, and very sensitive, so started to keep the aqueous cream in fridge and slapped it on several times each day. This helped, but did make a bit of a mess of my comfy genie bras!!
By the second week the nipple area was a bit sorry for itself, and they gave me a small tube of “wound dressing gel” which was for that area as well as the scar areas - this I am also keeping in the fridge and it really has helped.
I had been forewarned to expect cumulative side effects of fatigue as well as the soreness and sensitivity, and for the most part have been lucky during the 4 weeks of treatment and seemed to cope well. Keeping still on the bed while being “zapped” was a bit of a tall order - kept having an itch on my nose which I didn’t dare to scratch as couldn’t move my arms!
Now 8 days after last session and have been really tired/lethargic but luckily have been sleeping much much better at night. Still slapping the cream and gel all over as the whole area still feels a tad toasty!
But it really is all bearable, so wishing you the very best with all your treatment sessions - it has to be worth it all to blitz any leftover dodgy cells into the stratisphere!
Take care
Chris x
When I got a very sore nipple during radiotherapy one of the team suggested putting a cabbage leaf inside my bra. Like the old wise women used to suggest for sore boobs during breast feeding. Rather dubiously I did it, substituting a broccoli leaf as that was what we had in the garden. And the amazing thing was that it worked just brilliantly! It softened over the area, moulding like a second skin, sopped any rubbing, and felt lovely and cool. Yes, a little smelly … That and moisturising like a maniac night and morning got me through with no major skin problems.
Good luck to you all going through RT.
Jane x