Breast diagnosis

[kestral]

Carys, how long should we allow for the radiation treatment to be administered to fit in with the 2 to 3 hours travel.

[Carys]

You have a journey for 90 miles every day ? (is that one way being 90 miles, or there and back being 90 miles) Crikey, thats really bad luck that the RT facility is so far away - are you out in the sticks somewhere??? If people have a really long journey, sometimes the hospital can provide a hospital flat to save a silly amount of travelling. The RT will only take place on a weekday, and weekends are usually free. The radiotherapy itself (once the initial planning session has taken place) can be very quick. The planning session is longer, about 3/4 hour, and means they get all the settings on the machine, all the marking of the person and necessary positioning of cushions and pads sorted in advance. RT can be really fast once the staff and patient are in the pattern - go in, get changed, have it done and back to get dressed within less than 15 minutes. However, there are lots of other factors that can make it longer - the staff running late, the machine having broken down, if they have trouble getting the patient placement correct. All of those can happen, and do seem to happen now and again. So, basically on a good day - park, go in the factility 5 minutes in advance, get changed etc and you can be back out in 20 minutes - on a bad day....well.....hard to say.

[kestral]

We are on the eastern coast of England in lincolnshire. Most things have been sent to lincoln hospital so we travel 90 miles a day.

[kestral]

The fatigue is a big problem at the moment. She is naturally a busy person and so tends to push herself then feels shattered afterwards. Resting doesn't seem to take it away and sleeping is broken which doesn't help. Did you have experience of this carys?

[Carys]

Oh yessssss, bigtime lol Has she started RT yet? I know that I didn't sleep anyway from the stress of it all, but RT can make you very tired indeed. Having the BC diagnosis is a BIG DEAL, and affects you psychologically even if you aren't the most stressy of people, it is draining the whole experience. CAn she put her finger on why she's so tired ? My sleep was so poor during this time that I took a very low dose sleep tablet, just to get off to sleep.

[kestral]

She is having antibiotics s there may have been an infection, which she completes tomorrow. Her ibs has always caused her problems with sleeping and she has prolapses for which she had two operations in the past causing problems. Glaucoma in her eyes and a polyp causing problems in her ear so she has more than her fair share of issues.
You really wouldn't think she had all that going on if you met her, when people ask how she is she says she is fine and believes you have to keep busy and active. She is truly remarkable how she handles things going on in her life.

[Carys]

Good for her Kestral, she sounds like a spirited and active lady

[kestral]

51 years since we met and she has been a rock, but it's the ladies that often are while us fellows just stay boys that have got bigger. Think we were ment to be together as we have never left each other far in all those years.

[Carys]

I'm SURE you are meant to be together

[kestral]

Doing the 1st of our trips on 11th Sept to see the RT team about the treatment times.