coughing

hillbillycat · May 2004

I am just curious,I cough alot and I think it is from allergies but sometimes have a mental flash of what if? .......
I have mostly coughed early in the mornings especially during radiation treatments. Now that is over and I still cough but sometimes in the evening and I woke up last night coughing. Sometimes I experience a tightness in my chest from coughing and I seem to have alot of mucous.
I haven`t seen any blood unless I cough so hard that it strains my throat membranes. It also makes me feel tired. I think it is allergies ,what does everyone else think?

EllenM6246 · May 2004

Coughing is a symptom, but of what only your doctor can tell you. Meds can cause a cough as can illness. I say err on the side of safety and discuss it with your doctor. Have you been diagnosed with allergies? Do you take meds for them? Ellen

inkblot · May 2004

Even if you've had long standing, known allergies, you cannot assume that this is what's causing your cough now.

I AGREE with Ellen's suggestion, wholeheartedly.

There is a not uncommon pneumonitis which can occur with radiation. I have mild asthma and my pulmonologist kept a very close watch for this during my rads. I did develop a slight cough, near the end of rads and he prescribed antibiotics and inhalers, (albuterol and a steroidal one) and it cleared up immediately. My pulmonologist thought we'd nipped the radiation pneumonitis in the bud, whereas the rad onc. (whom I thought was a ditz from the beginning) didn't think the slight cough was significant! Go figure.

This could be nothing more than allergies, but even if it is only that, you would seem to need some treatment for it, since it's waking you and you're having mucous as well.

At any rate, don't assume anything or make yourself nuts with the "what if's". Have it checked out and addressed accordingly.

Feel better soon.

Love, light and laughter,
Ink

hillbillycat · May 2004

EllenM6246 said:
Coughing is a symptom, but of what only your doctor can tell you. Meds can cause a cough as can illness. I say err on the side of safety and discuss it with your doctor. Have you been diagnosed with allergies? Do you take meds for them? Ellen

Hi Ellen,I think it is an allergy. People are mowing grass etc...I do have hay fever during the summer. I don`t take any meds since I am finished with my treatments. I really just wonder if allergies cause a cough that last now more than 8 weeks.Normally, I would never think about anything other than allergies but now I must pay closer attention with the hope that if anything did occur ,I would find it while it is small.Before I found my breast lump, I had the philosophy that if I didn`t think about it it would not happen to me. If I had not had a dream ,(when I found my cancer) I am sure I would be in big trouble health wise. Yes I will try to contact the dr. I was just sort of waiting and maybe I am unsure. I went and filed bankruptsy on my medical bills since I owed 41,000 just on my part. So I wonder if the dr. will be not so happy with me and I put off going to her. Anyway, thanks for writing......Shirl

hillbillycat · May 2004

inkblot said:
Even if you've had long standing, known allergies, you cannot assume that this is what's causing your cough now.

I AGREE with Ellen's suggestion, wholeheartedly.

There is a not uncommon pneumonitis which can occur with radiation. I have mild asthma and my pulmonologist kept a very close watch for this during my rads. I did develop a slight cough, near the end of rads and he prescribed antibiotics and inhalers, (albuterol and a steroidal one) and it cleared up immediately. My pulmonologist thought we'd nipped the radiation pneumonitis in the bud, whereas the rad onc. (whom I thought was a ditz from the beginning) didn't think the slight cough was significant! Go figure.

This could be nothing more than allergies, but even if it is only that, you would seem to need some treatment for it, since it's waking you and you're having mucous as well.

At any rate, don't assume anything or make yourself nuts with the "what if's". Have it checked out and addressed accordingly.

Feel better soon.

Love, light and laughter,
Ink

Hello Ink, I am curious as to how pnemonitis could occur during radiation therapy.Is it because the cells which can help us fight infection are destroyed or lowered?.
Did you run a fever? Thanks for writing....Shirl

bunnie · May 2004

Hi iam not trying to scare you or anythng but i would have your cough checked out i coughed most of dec and finlly went to the doc first part of jan he treatement for broncides and said if cought isnt better come back well cough never got better and at first i put off going back until my hubby instste they took xrays and foung out my cancer came back in the lungs.Like i said not trying to scare you but i think i would check it out too be on the safe side.keep us posted.Bunnie

inkblot · May 2004

hillbillycat said:
Hello Ink, I am curious as to how pnemonitis could occur during radiation therapy.Is it because the cells which can help us fight infection are destroyed or lowered?.
Did you run a fever? Thanks for writing....Shirl

Hi Kitty:

I don't know all the intricacies or the complete answer to how pneumonitis occurs. My pulmonologist said that it's due to the lungs' exposure to the radiation. In most cases re rads for bc, the radiation enters/crosses/touches the lung fields and it sets up an irritation, sort of like bronchitis, which can progress to pneumonitis. In my case, for 3 or 4 days, I thought I just had a bit of allergies going on, but it got worse and the coughing was more frequent, then I began with a low grade fever of about 100 degrees and that's when I rang my lung doc.

The good news is that today, many radiation facilities are utilizing newer and better technology to "map" the targeted radiation area to better ensure that it spares the lungs (and in the case of left breast cancer, the heart also).

I had left bc, so the rad onc told me, when I pressed him, that the radiation would "just touch" about 1/2 cm of my heart and about 1.5 cm of my left lung. I'd already read that
sometimes, the radiation damage can cause a "fibrosis" in the lung or heart, which can, in some cases, be chronic and spread somewhat, over time. Not common as I understand it, but one of the risks associated with radiation.

Truth is, we could worry for a very long time, to no avail, about the what if's concerning long term side effects of our treatments, recurrence or mets. The end result though is that we're just giving fear a garden to grow in. Nothing more. Better to just put the fear aside and get it thoroughly checked out and know for certain what's causing your cough. Even if it's just allergies, I know you'd appreciate a good, solid night's sleep without the coughing waking you. Hoping you've got an appoint. set for doing just that.

Good luck and please let us know how you make out.

Love, light and laughter,
Ink

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