Radiation Update

waffle8
waffle8 Member Posts: 234
edited March 2014 in Breast Cancer #1
Hey you all....Just wanted to let you know that the awful fatigue I had when I started radiation has finally let up..Praise God!!!But in its place I have awful burns[under my arm and one spot under breast I think from where my bra rubbed]....Just started on the silver sulfadiazine....Wondered how long this takes to help? I have 4 regular treatments lefts and 5 boosters...I say I am down to single digits....yippee

Comments

  • carkris
    carkris Member Posts: 4,553 Member
    so glad you are feeling
    so glad you are feeling better. I felt better and better on rads as the chemo effects left my body. Mama G had silvadene perhaps you could pm her. can you wear camisols or something loose so the bras dont irritate. perhaps people here have suggestions for materials to cushion or certain bras to use. glad you are almost done!!!
  • mjjones453
    mjjones453 Member Posts: 155
    radiation
    I was pleasantly surprised at how quick the burned areas healed. I had mediplex pads that the radiation team gave me. At home I would sit with my bra off, and the fan on the areas. That hurt like heck! I hope they heal fast for you! Your almost there!!!
  • Mama G
    Mama G Member Posts: 762

    radiation
    I was pleasantly surprised at how quick the burned areas healed. I had mediplex pads that the radiation team gave me. At home I would sit with my bra off, and the fan on the areas. That hurt like heck! I hope they heal fast for you! Your almost there!!!

    within one week
    my burning was a memory. I also used refrigerated aloe and I think that helped more than anything else.
  • waffle8
    waffle8 Member Posts: 234
    Mama G said:

    within one week
    my burning was a memory. I also used refrigerated aloe and I think that helped more than anything else.

    Thanks
    Thanks everyone....Need to pick up some aloe...Will try every tip I can.....
  • TraciInLA
    TraciInLA Member Posts: 1,994 Member
    waffle8 said:

    Thanks
    Thanks everyone....Need to pick up some aloe...Will try every tip I can.....

    I think I can...I think I can...I think I can...
    Almost there, Waffle!

    I also burned really badly under my arms (I had radiation to both breasts) -- by the last week, I had Silvadene cream and gel paks. The Silvadene cream was a gift from the angels for me -- I filled the prescription in the evening, put it on before I went to bed, and I could see noticeable improvement by the next morning.

    My tumor sites were nowhere near the areas under my arms that were burned so badly, so, once the boosters started to the tumor sites, the burned areas really did start to heal quickly. By the 5th day after I finished radiation, the burns were pretty much healed up.

    Hope the Silvadene works as well for you, and looking forward to hearing that you're done!

    Traci
  • Boppy_of_6
    Boppy_of_6 Member Posts: 1,138
    TraciInLA said:

    I think I can...I think I can...I think I can...
    Almost there, Waffle!

    I also burned really badly under my arms (I had radiation to both breasts) -- by the last week, I had Silvadene cream and gel paks. The Silvadene cream was a gift from the angels for me -- I filled the prescription in the evening, put it on before I went to bed, and I could see noticeable improvement by the next morning.

    My tumor sites were nowhere near the areas under my arms that were burned so badly, so, once the boosters started to the tumor sites, the burned areas really did start to heal quickly. By the 5th day after I finished radiation, the burns were pretty much healed up.

    Hope the Silvadene works as well for you, and looking forward to hearing that you're done!

    Traci

    YEA!!
    I know how excited you are getting, Tuesday was my last one! The most pain I had was not right under my arm but kind of toward my back right out from the underarm area. I hope that makes sense. I am down to a very small spot there. I have been using some triple antibiotic ointment there on that spot. The cream they gave me has worked well till that area gave me probs. The aquaphor works well there too. Aloe Vera is good too but it did burn that one place for me. I had to stop wearing my bra about 10 trt. before I was through. I have been going braless when I can or a sports bra. The incision are where the boosters were is feeling fine right now just red. God Bless
    (((Hugs))) Janice
  • Jean 0609
    Jean 0609 Member Posts: 2,462
    Hi waffle8,
    So happy to hear the the fatigue has let us. YAY! Sorry to hear about your burns. I didn't have radiation, so I can't help you there. Glad your treatments are almost over. Hugs, Jean
  • VickiSam
    VickiSam Member Posts: 9,079 Member
    Jean 0609 said:

    Hi waffle8,
    So happy to hear the the fatigue has let us. YAY! Sorry to hear about your burns. I didn't have radiation, so I can't help you there. Glad your treatments are almost over. Hugs, Jean

    WaffleI .. down to single digits .. WOW .. you such a
    RAD goddess ... and to have a little more energy .. how lovely! Take care, get plenty of rest and hydrate .. those are the only tips I have to offer, as I did not have to endure any RAD's ..

    Strength, Peace and Courage:


    Vicki Sam
  • PinkWillow
    PinkWillow Member Posts: 11
    That silver sulfadiazine
    That silver sulfadiazine worked miracles for me, also. It only took about three days for healing under my arm! It is such a great feeling to go into that radiation room for the last time - happy day to you!
  • BlownAway60
    BlownAway60 Member Posts: 851
    Glad you are feeling
    Glad you are feeling better.

    Hugs

    Donna
  • Tux
    Tux Member Posts: 544

    Glad you are feeling
    Glad you are feeling better.

    Hugs

    Donna

    I had bad burns & I bought
    I had bad burns & I bought white flannel from the fabric store & cut it into squares to line my bra for about the last 2 weeks. Once the rads were over, healing began immediately!
    Hang in there--you are almost done. Also, I had trouble with the hospital smells (not unpleasant, really) & I used Vick's to blunt my nose for the last couple of weeks.
  • putzie
    putzie Member Posts: 66 Member
    I start rads in 2 weeks.
    These tips are spectacular!! I was so glad to be finished with chemo and surgery that I hadn't given radiation much thought. I start on the 30th though and have loved the ideas your girls gave. Thank you and good luck to all of us. Have a super day!!
    Dawn
  • Curlz
    Curlz Member Posts: 42
    You're getting there...
    I'm now 3.5 weeks post-radiation and am happy to say that the mess that was my left boob/underarm is already a memory! I was literally purple under my arm/bra band by the middle of my 28 treatments, and then had a blistered/draining spot (SO attractive) on the inside of my cleavage. Once treatments stopped, everything started peeling. My doc is very anti-topical lotions in general, but I used hydrocortisone cream after the 2nd week or so, smearing it on like I would any other lotion. The doc's attitude was basically that this is all normal and I just needed to get through it--which I did. AND YOU WILL TOO!

    In terms of what to wear, I wore very soft sports bras that were actually too big--and I think those were the only solution. I've got DDs, so going without a bra just isn't an option.

    The other nice news is that one of my techs was right on the mark about when I'd start to feel like myself again in terms of brain and energy (I was def getting depressed)--it took about 3 weeks.

    Keep taking care of yourself, and use whatever helps you feel good!

    Headsmack: ETA that one of the best things you can do is take off your bra as soon as you get home...letting things fly free/air out is helpful. I lived in OLD t-shirts every day...if you don't have any, get yourself a pkg of men's t-shirts, wash and dry them a couple of times. SOFT!!
  • Rague
    Rague Member Posts: 3,653 Member
    I can't give you any info on
    I can't give you any info on the time it takes for silvadene/sulfadene to work as I'm allergic to sulfa so couldn't use it on my burns. What finally helped with my burns was Domebro (sp?) soaks and then slathering with AquaPhor.

    It wasn't until the last 3 rads (had no 'boosters') that I had any 'burning' at all and then it was just a mild 'sunburn'. BUT as soon as they were over the burning 'took off' and the entire radiated area blistered and opened up. It took a full 6 weeks for the last scab to come off. I had to wear white t-shirts as bandages over it as the mepelix (sp?) would not stay on due to the amount of seepage and I had to change them every 2 hrs. Some of the area healed up with no scars but I have a very large scared area under arm and around to the back (the deepest of the burns) and 2 along my neck/shoulder. Thankfully the worst of the burns were in an area that has no feeling left in it or it would have been really bad - as it was Vicodan made the rest of the pain 'tolerable'.

    Take care and be sure that the rads Dr is aware of how bad the burn is getting.

    It will be over soon! YEAH!

    Susan
  • survivorbc09
    survivorbc09 Member Posts: 4,374 Member
    waffle8 said:

    Thanks
    Thanks everyone....Need to pick up some aloe...Will try every tip I can.....

    I never got burnt, just
    I never got burnt, just dark, dark pink and tender. You have been given a lot of good tips here. Good luck waffle.

    Jan
  • jnl
    jnl Member Posts: 3,869 Member
    VickiSam said:

    WaffleI .. down to single digits .. WOW .. you such a
    RAD goddess ... and to have a little more energy .. how lovely! Take care, get plenty of rest and hydrate .. those are the only tips I have to offer, as I did not have to endure any RAD's ..

    Strength, Peace and Courage:


    Vicki Sam

    You are almost done Waffle!
    You are almost done Waffle! The fatigue goes along with having rads, but, you will get your strength back. I found that exercise really helped me.

    Good luck!


    Leeza
  • Hope 2010
    Hope 2010 Member Posts: 62
    Isn't it nice to be down to
    Isn't it nice to be down to single digits. I just finished my rads on Friday and glad. My skin got really dark and there's a few really sore (sunburned) spots on my collar bone, underarm and under my breast. The silversulfadiazine helped out a lot, but a couple of things that they gave to me was a gel pack called Vigilon. It's a nice cooling pad that the nurses gave to me and also cut out a gauze that I wore like a tank top (it's more like a fish net tank top). That helped. Another thing that is helping me out as well is another lotion (Regenecare) that the nurses gave to me to help with the itching and sometime burning/pain areas. It has lidocaine which numbs the area.

    Aside from that I'm just wearning cami's that I bought from Costco. They're comfy and also wear a shirt over it when I got out. Good luck with the rest of your treatments.
  • waffle8
    waffle8 Member Posts: 234
    Hope 2010 said:

    Isn't it nice to be down to
    Isn't it nice to be down to single digits. I just finished my rads on Friday and glad. My skin got really dark and there's a few really sore (sunburned) spots on my collar bone, underarm and under my breast. The silversulfadiazine helped out a lot, but a couple of things that they gave to me was a gel pack called Vigilon. It's a nice cooling pad that the nurses gave to me and also cut out a gauze that I wore like a tank top (it's more like a fish net tank top). That helped. Another thing that is helping me out as well is another lotion (Regenecare) that the nurses gave to me to help with the itching and sometime burning/pain areas. It has lidocaine which numbs the area.

    Aside from that I'm just wearning cami's that I bought from Costco. They're comfy and also wear a shirt over it when I got out. Good luck with the rest of your treatments.

    Burn baby burn
    I am still burning after 5 days on silvadine... Went for my treatment today and doc. looked at my skin and said "thats from the radiation" I wanted to say No sh** Sherlock....So with 3 regular treatments left they decided to switch to the 5 boosters and give my skin a break....Wondering if those gel packs are prescription things?I need something cause I can't get any rest with this pain...The places that are blistered keep pulling when I toss and turn....Blessings to you all for sharing.....
  • Boppy_of_6
    Boppy_of_6 Member Posts: 1,138
    waffle8 said:

    Burn baby burn
    I am still burning after 5 days on silvadine... Went for my treatment today and doc. looked at my skin and said "thats from the radiation" I wanted to say No sh** Sherlock....So with 3 regular treatments left they decided to switch to the 5 boosters and give my skin a break....Wondering if those gel packs are prescription things?I need something cause I can't get any rest with this pain...The places that are blistered keep pulling when I toss and turn....Blessings to you all for sharing.....

    So sorry to hear you are
    So sorry to hear you are burning that badly. I just had a small spot that burned.I did not have to miss any though. It was getting better by the time I finished the boosters. best wishes to you for fast healing. God Bless
    (((Hugs))) Janice
  • TraciInLA
    TraciInLA Member Posts: 1,994 Member
    waffle8 said:

    Burn baby burn
    I am still burning after 5 days on silvadine... Went for my treatment today and doc. looked at my skin and said "thats from the radiation" I wanted to say No sh** Sherlock....So with 3 regular treatments left they decided to switch to the 5 boosters and give my skin a break....Wondering if those gel packs are prescription things?I need something cause I can't get any rest with this pain...The places that are blistered keep pulling when I toss and turn....Blessings to you all for sharing.....

    If you need pain meds to get some sleep, be pushy!
    Waffle, you're singing my song...I also burned badly under my arms, and I know exactly what you're saying about it "pulling" when you lay down.

    No position was comfortable, and I wasn't getting any sleep the last week of radiation, and it took a couple of talks with my doctor to really get him to understand how much pain I was in. He kept saying "take Advil or Tylenol," which weren't doing anything, and I finally got pushy: "I NEED PRESCRIPTION PAIN MEDS." He gave me just a few days' worth of Vicodin, which really helped me just get a good night's sleep, and get me into the boosters.

    If you can't get any sleep, you're only going to feel worse, and it sure won't help with healing, so I really recommend you insist on seeing your doctor tomorrow, and be pushy if you have to. You're almost there, but there's no reason you have to suffer so much just to get to the finish line.

    Traci