Can radiation treatment cause oesophageal issues??

[Thyroidfighter]

Had thyroid cancer 2013 + 2 x radioactive iodine treatment 1-131

..(swallowed capsules)

Now have esophagus mobility issues ?

Could my treatment be a part of it (do have acid reflux & a small hiatus hernia too ?

Thanks for reading my post 😁👍

[Hidden]

Side effects are something that you ought to take up with the clinic that gave you your treatment. You might also try the Macmillan Support helpline as they are in touch with some of the side-effects of cancer treatment. 0808 808 0000

With conventional radiotherapy, I think that it would all depend on where the radiotherapy was directed. I could envisage that saliva might then be affected because of radiotherapy.

Regardless of these issues, though, if you have swallowing / motility problems, you should consider going to your doctor for advice. In some ways you are speculating about the possible cause of the problem, but your instinct may not necessarily be correct, and the only way to find out for sure is to ask for medical advice.

[DaveChuter]

I completely agree with Alan, radiotherapy can have side effects depending on the various targeting unique to your treatment and only your radiotherapy clinic can advise if any side effects are possible or expected for your treatment.

You do need to seek medical advise regarding your symptoms as could be a new issue and may linked especially if you have reflux, you do not mention if this was present before radiotherapy or presented after treatment.

Kind regards,

Dave

[Thyroidfighter in reply to DaveChuter]

Acid reflux before but not as bad radiation treatment was in tablet form that was swallowed and work from inside out so wasn't like conventional radiation treatment...but do hear u on reverting bck to radiologist in this area *

[DaveChuter in reply to Thyroidfighter]

Hi,

We are all patients rather than health professionals and can only help from our experiences and information gained from our pathway, your radiation treatment is new to me if swallowed as the ones I am aware of are conventional or targeted from outside, sometimes with implanted target seeds as in prostate cancer.

Looks like I need to put my research hat on to find out more about this, is there a name for this treatment or trial?

Reflux was an issue with me for many years and slowly progressed to a stage for me to consider visiting my GPS, I do feel this is unrelated to your treatment but does need checking out by your GPS.

Kind regards,

Dave C

[Thyroidfighter in reply to DaveChuter]

My treatment was 131-1 iodine treatment

..(for thyroid cancer )...found 1 case that had a esophagus issues /swollowing...& in turn the capsule got stuck while going down and gave extra radiation in one area.couldn't find no more as yet...this is not a trail...it's been used for yrs for what I can gather **

Thank you for your interest and reading my post *

[gutlesswonder]

Radioactive iodine (I-131) has been used to treat over-active thyroid disorders (hyperthyroidism) since the early 1940s. It is an effective method of treatment. It is now being used more often as a first-line treatment rather than surgery. Radioactive iodine is taken up by the thyroid, and destroys the cells in the thyroid gland. This has the effect of reducing the amount of thyroxine made by the thyroid gland and may also reduce the size of the gland.

I-131 is usually given as a single oral dose, thereafter the thyroid gland may take up to 6 months to die off completely. The single dose can be repeated at 3 monthly intervals.

If the thyroid cancer had spread (metastases) then, regardless of the location of the secondary (usually the lungs), the I-131 will be successfully taken up by those cells and their death will ensue.

There are no reports of adverse events with long term effects in any other part of the body.

Hence, given your reflux, likely associated with the Hiatus Hernia, you would be well advised to consider an investigation of your oesophageal problems, since it is unlikely that there is a connection with the above treatment.

[Thyroidfighter in reply to gutlesswonder]

Hi thanks for your detail response on 1-131 treatment connection..it's really interesting reading..knew most of it but interested information about if spread did go further of a second to thyroid cancer is issues to the lungs.. for the last couple of yrs iv had really bad problems with my breathing /asthma...having to take up to a month off when I get problems....might be a idea maybe to get a lung function test done .