Howdy Floks,
I’m new to this forum and to this whole journey. It looks like the next possible step for me could be salvage radiation therapy. While there is a lot of information about the after effects of this treatment, I can’t seem to find answers as to how one feels during the treatments. Can anyone on this forum tell me about this?
I did 37 days of adjuvant RT after my RALP. The radiation treatment is painless (except for the tattoos they mark you with.) After 2 weeks I started feeling the fatigue, which has now lasted 5 months. There also is the chance of developing bladder cancer or a form of leukemia about 4-5 years after RT. But my PSA has remained <0.1 for 10 months.
Good luck!
The risk, if it exists at all, is very small:
There should be no sensation during each treatment. Make sure you exercise.
I had 39 IMRTs in Mar 16 after BCR from surgery in Mar 14. 70.2Gya. I personally experienced no side affects, I worked every day, exercised, played basketball, lifted weights, rode my bike, swam..., drank coffee and alcohol, ate normally, other than not being able to travel, nothing. The most difficult difficult part for me was timing the drinking of the water before treatment each day to fill the bladder so it lifted out of the way for treatment.
That's not to say my experience will be yours. Your medical team should advise you of diet they recommend and you should have a meeting each week with your radiologist and the head nurse to discuss any symptoms you do experience so they can deal with it. Mine was on Friday of each week.
Kevin
During my SRT, along with HMT, did experience some fatigue.
Eighteen months after SRT started to see blood in urine when straining to have a bowel movement. Stool softener has helped me cut this way down.
Urologist says it is most probably from radiation.
Bob
Check out PROTON Radiation treatments, instead of PHOTON radiation. I had 39 treatments with only side effect being a little fatigue in my hips. After 3 years, PSA is still 0.12 PHOTON goes on through you like a bullet and PROTON doesn't go past the cancer. Just concentrates on the cancer cells.
I also had proton treatment PSA 0.1 since treatment 2years ago glad l went to Prague
I did 40 treatments. IMRT. Last 3 weeks had minor proctitis. Some rectal bleeding and burning. Lasted another 3 weeks post treatment and that was it. Have not had an issue in 6 months. Keep hydrated
If you want more of my personal history with PCA go to my profile. In short 2.5 yrs after my prostatectomy my psa rose to 0.183 and it was time to radiate the prostate bed. I elected not to have ADT with the salvage radiation. No sensation at all during the 38 consecutive treatments. I ran 25+ miles per week and ran every morning prior to my radiation treatment. The exercise was key to help reduce the amount of fatigue. I had to modify my plant based diet due to temporary intestinal distress which disappeared 3 months after the last radiation treatment. The good news is 2.5 years later my psa is undetectable. Good luck!
I'm starting salvage radiation on the 7th of this month. Yeah, those tattoos hurt and the technician refused to give me a full tramp-stamp. Good to know the process is most likely painless and hopefully not too hard to tolerate.
Oh yeah, anybody know how likely it is that the bladder will be damaged during radiation. Mine is much better but probably still healing; however the radiologist feels I'm out of time to wait for more bladder healing. Radiation starts next week. Will I end up back in diapers. I'd expect this is highly variable.
39 treatments here, all very fast and totally painless. About 11/2 years after last treatment, blood show up in my urine. I went on a water drinking binge and no blood was visible within 3 days. Urologist scoped the bladder, told me about 10% of treated PCa guys end up a bit overcooked and that I was one of the "lucky 10%" He said nothing could be done, would probably happen and may get worse... no help. That night, I stumbled onto a website and found I had been lately consuming a lot of some foods that can be bothersome to someone with bladder cystitis:
ichelp.org/living-with-ic/i...
Almost a full year since, no more issues whatsoever!
"Will I end back up in diapers", I was told to expect roughly the same level of control
at the end of radiation as I had at the beginning, but not to expect much if any improvement from then on. I was about 95% before treatment, around 95% now.
How is it going? My dad is on 15 of 28 and is having issues. Think its proctitis but doctor didnt blink an eye... shouldnt they be concerned or try to help prescribe something?
Tired. Must push through it with cardio and resistance training.
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