I went through radiation treatment, 35 treatments, every day for 7 weeks (M-F) to my pelvic region. Towards the end, the last week, I began urinating every 2 hours, day and night. I would get up at night every two hours to urinate. My last treatment was about a month ago. I have two questions:
1 - with all that frequent urination, is dehydration a concern? (I drink gatorade and bottled water throughout the day)
2 - when is the frequency of urination going to subside and return to "normal"?
The radiation causes the urethral tissues to swell shut, so you aren't fully emptying your bladder. It's a temporary side effect. You can ask your RO for a scrip for an alpha blocker, like Flomax or Rapaflo. You may also find that naproxen (or similar NSAID) helps.
Here are the temporary side effects you can expect:
pcnrv.blogspot.com/2018/10/...
Part of the problem is you're drinking too much. Restrict fluids, especially at night - only drink when you're thirsty. Avoid fruit juices, soda, milk, coffee, tea - anything acidic (that stimulates the kidneys).
Thank you for your reply. My oncologist ordered an ultrasound of my bladder as an extra measure and the ultrasound results showed that when I urinate, by bladder is completely empty. I guess my next action would be to cut back on the fluids I drink and monitor my hydration. It seems like I'm always thirsty. And the only things I drink are gatorade and bottled water.
Then it may be bladder spasms - ask your urologist for samples of Vesicare, Myrtibiq, etc. to find one that works for you.
Now that you mention it, my oncologist did mention bladder spasm. She prescribed Oxybutynin I began taking it and my mouth dried up, my lips began to crack, and my throat began to swell up. I stopped taking it and emailed her to inform her. She agreed with stopping taking it, but did not mention an alternative. So I've just been monitoring it and hoping it goes away.
There are about a half dozen different ones to choose from. They all have side effects.
I tried them all and had the same side effects from each drug. Same as DaCOOtie. I could not tolerate SE and just gave up and accepted that I'll just have to put up with getting up about 2 to 3 times a night and hit the bathroom.
I have had the same problem with urinating at least every two hours day and night for almost 3 years. I had radiation like you, with 25 sessions finishing in October 2016, then beginning chemotherapy with 6 treatments every 3 weeks until Feb 2017 and am on hormone therapy forever. I too had the same side effects with Oxybutynin as you, so have just put up with the urinating problems. My MO and urologist haven’t really suggested any alternative. I will ask again when I see my MO on March 14th. I have read all the side effects of alternatives, which concern me, so haven’t pushed it too much. Because my psa is less than .01 and my scans show Mets are now minimal, I just put up with frequency of urinating. Having lost 20 kgms over the last 3 months on a healthy weight for life program, and increasing my exercise regime, I feel so much better with fatigue etc, so live with frequency, but often wonder if I can do anything else to reduce this frequency.
I will go to radiation session 17 of 35 today. I was asked to have treatments with a full bladder, so the bladder would move away from the prostate bed and avoid scarring from the radiation reducing bladder elasticity (my interpretation). The volume that the bladder can hold would then be reduced if scarred by radiation. I am trying, but frequency has increased as well. I will monitor this thread since I do not know what my my frequency will be in the end. As always, someone can correct me if I am wrong.
It was my understanding that a full bladder for radiation treatments was necessary in order to keep organs out of the way so that the radiation hits the areas it's supposed to and wasn't blocked. Gas was also a big concern. They said it also got in the way. So I kept a supply of GasX on hand. I have never had anybody talk about my gas as much as they did during treatment....lol.
Yes - and then there is the gas! My wife commented about my gas this morning. Seems like I have much more than usual and they want an empty rectum. Then again, maybe it is just me.
My finger is getting worn out from the grandkids pulling it!
Have them press on your nose instead.
Good Luck, Good Health and Good Humor.
j-o-h-n Friday 03/01/2019 9:20 PM EST
If you can correct this with alpha blockers recommended but Tall Allen, great. If that doesn't work you may need a TUR.
The tissues are scared from radiation. Unlikely to be able to do tur prostate
I had a TUR after radiation treatments.
How were the results of the TUR? IS THAT THE SAME AS A TURP? did it help reduce frequent urination? What were the hardships of getting a TUR?
It did reduce the frequency of urination. No side effects.Be prepared, because of the scarring caused by radiation the TURP may not last you may have to resort to self catheterization.
I'm not going to prepare for that. Ive got enough real problems to deal with now. No need to add worries that may never happen. 
Great questions that I too wonder after doing the same RT almost 4 yrs ago.. I still have the pee around the clock syndrome... nothing normal about my urology . I took a tri monthly test last summer as I cleaned my moms hoarded house out with no ac in 115 degree temps. My doc was alarmed for the first time that my creactin was so high . I was not drinking and throughly dehydrated.. the answers is yes, we need to drink lots more water even if we pee more . Dehydration is a killer . It doesn’t take A med degree to think this .. so drink much pure water ... and pee away.... it beats not peeing at all. Been there done that.. Take care..
I have heard that a balloon is inflated in the rectum to avoid radiation damage during Proton Radiation therapy. Is this also done during photon radiation therapy?
"Balloon" That's also done when you get an Endorectal MRI. Had it done twice. I understand that the third time they insert a Piñata.
Good Luck, Good Health and Good Humor.
j-o-h-n Friday 03/02/2019 9:27 PM EST
Post-Salvage Radiation GI side effects?
Early side effects from ADT + radiation
Mds - the most common side effect of radiation 
Radiation side effects 25 sessions vs. 42 
