Hey, today was my very last Radiation Therapy treatment! Yay! I still have Herceptin infusions every three weeks until March. Three months from now, I will look at my reconstruction options, so I have to take extra good care of my skin and get all my range-of-motion back. But we are finished with the big guns - chemo, surgery and now radiation!
RT really takes over your life. Treatments are every day, Monday through Friday. Gradually, I noticed more side effects over time. I have some burned skin and a few blisters. The burns are sort of like a bad sunburn, except deeper and darker. I guess the burn is more intense because of the daily exposure.
I think that my effects from treatment are just right. If the treatment was stronger, I might have had to take a break from radiation. The very nice, very friendly woman who had her treatment in the time slot before mine had to take two breaks because her skin was highly reactive and blistered badly.
If my treatment was weaker, I might not have been burned at all but also might not have gotten maximum benefit. All my life, I have had few sunburns and did not tan very easily. Kind of funny since I'm so pale but that's how I roll. This skin attribute protected me during Radiation Therapy and allowed me to get zapped nice and strong - just how I wanted it!
I have been so very lucky, all the way through all of the various procedures and treatments that I've had. Each one has defintely had it's challenges, but my nice, strong, healthy body came through each time and everything has been very effective. I'm hoping that this means a lower possibility of recurrence cause I do not want to go through any of it ever again!
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