Day 242 - Radiation #24: Madame Curie

Another day, another radiation treatment. Today's treatment consisted of a zap or five and a meet and greet with the doctor. Dan brought me back to the treatment room and asked how my blisters were. I said they were the same as before. He took a look at it and said, "Yep." Then Andrea put the aquafor on my blisters and it was time to go. Five zaps later it was time to take the bolus off. I asked Andrea to take the bolus off before the tape. She obliged and my side didn't hurt.

Then it was off to see the doctor. Nicole came and got me. She asked me how things were. I told her the same as yesterday and that I liked the non-gel pads better. She thought I might like that. So she told me that she would get me more of those pads and then two more of my fashionable netting tube tops! I told Nicole that I am starting to get itchy, but it's under control. She asked if I was in pain from the blisters. I am not.

Next Dr. Faisil Siddiqui came in (Dr. Marquez's resident). We chatted a little bit and he looked at my blister. He said that it was looking pretty good. He thought that some of the blisters were scars, but those were blisters that my body re-absorbed the liquid. We talked about how I am going treat the blisters... with the aquafor. He asked if I knew what the bolus was for. I said yes. Then Dr. S said something that struck me odd. He told me that the bolus gets the radiation more concentrated at the skin/surface and that if we need to change treatment, we can remove the bolus. Hmmm... nah. I am fine with my treatment the way it is. If it helps lessen the change of recurrence, then continue with what we've got going. I only have four more treatments. I think I'll manage. Dr. S said that he thinks my skin will hold up. I hope so. Then we talked about kids. He actually has three... a daughter who's 12 and two boys 9 and 3. I like him. He's cool. I told him that I need to get a picture with him. He said okay, then asked if it was for the blog. I said, "yep." Then he laughed and said, "No." I told him regardless I still wanted a picture of him. He will when I go back for my check up...

Which brings me to post radiation! My last treatment is scheduled for next Monday. I usually Dr. Marquez on Tuesdays. So he told me that what I need to do is schedule a post-radiation check up in two weeks so they can check my skin. So it looks like I'll be seeing Dr. Marquez the first week of October. They want to make sure my skin is healing. Dr. S said that I will continue to see side effects of the radiation treatment for at least a week after the last one. Not a problem. Following the two week treatment, I'll have another one at 6 weeks. Wow! I can't believe it!

Before I could leave, Dr. S said that he had to get an attending physician to see me for a moment. Dr. S is a resident (it's a 4 year program) and he needs to be signed off. So then he left and came back several minutes later with Dr. Holland. He was a hoot. He asked if he could see my blisters. Joking, I told him no. He thought I was serious. I was not and was laughing as well as Dr. S. He said it's looking good. Dr. Holland asked what I was doing for my skin. I told him it's aquafor, calendula and then lotion. He said that there's a thing called silvadene. I said, I am quite familiar with it. Then I said that when I am done with treatment I'll schmeer it on. I told him that I will play the bagel and the silvadene will be my cream cheese! It's the same consistency. Dr. Holland laughed. And that was it. (Dr. Marquez was away speaking someplace fabulous)

Radiation Therapists: Beth and Rebecca (the historian)

Fact #24: Maria Curie... ever heard of her? They made a movie about her life. Anywho, she was a Nobel Prize winner for Physics in 1903 (along with her husband, Pierre Curie and Henri Becquerel). In 1898, she discovered two elements polonium and radium them. Madame Curie named polonium after her native country, Poland. She also received a Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1911. Curie died in 1934 aplastic anemia associated with the radioactive materials she handled in her lifetime. Another thing I learned... her papers are kept in a lead case because they are so highly radioactive. If anyone wants to read them, then they need to wear protective clothing.

Me and Radiation Therapist, Linea

Day 241 - Radiation #23: An escape plan

Today was a good day. I felt like a lot was accomplished. I went in to see the doctor today before treatment. I didn't get to see Dr. Marquez. Instead I saw the nurse, Nicole. We went into one of the changing rooms and I showed her my blister and where the skin was stripped off. She said... oooh. I said that I wanted to continue with treatment since we are so close to being done. She understood. I asked if there was something we could put over the area, like gauze. I said it's not the treatment that I am worried about. I am worried that when the bolus comes off, then it's going to rip off the skin on the blister. She went and talked with one of the radiation therapists. Andrea suggested we try using aquafor hoping that will lubricate the area enough that the bolus wouldn't stick. I asked about using the silvadene. She said I don't have to use it. It contains silver in it which you can't have during treatment. In addition, they would have to take it off for treatment. Nicole said that normally Dr. Marquez treats a patient and when they are done, she says use the silvadene. I'm cool with that. She told me that I should use the aquafor in its place. We will watch for any infection. I have to make sure it's only oozing clear liquid and doesn't smell. She said that the clear liquid is fine. We talked about putting something over the blister so my arm doesn't rub against it or my shirt. So now I have this netting that I am using as a tube top. It's working great. If you've had a baby, think of the wonderful "post-partum panties" they give you. It's glorified cotton netting with elastic in it. Nevertheless, I can put a bandage type pad over the area and have it stay in place without using tape. I also have these gel packs I can use as well. So far, so good. Oh yes, the silvadene... some of it falls off, some of it sticks around and some of it is absorbed - just in case you want to know.

Then I had my radiation treatment. I told Dan it was all his fault. He looked at it and said "uh huh." He went and got me some aquafor and I got to apply it with four people watching me. It was quite comical because it's so dim in the room. I had Dan, Andrea, Linea and Trang (I think that was his name... having a chemo moment) watching me. Finally Dan grabbed a flashlight and shined it on my armpit. Then it was lay down and put my arms up. It took a little longer today because they had to reset the MLCs. It was funny because Trang told me what they were... I said, "yes, I know." He had forgotten that I am learning all about radiation. They all joke that by the time I am done, I will be able to take the boards. Ha! I had the first two zaps and then came the bolus. I told Dan to be gentle. He said he's not ever... I wanted to say something else, but I bit my tongue... since I was in such a compromising position. My next three zaps were uneventful. Next came the touchy part - removal of the bolus. Dan started to remove the medical tape he puts on the bolus (straps me to the table and tapes the bolus down around my breast). Things were going well... but then he got to the part that's near my underarm. I told him to take the bolus off and then remove the tape. It works better for me. When he's pulling off the tape on the bolus, he's pulling at my skin, too. But when he removes it first, it works better. So he pulled off the bolus and the aquafor worked. It didn't stick to my skin as much and didn't pull.

So now I am wearing my little tube top and spreading aquafor under my arm.

Here's my fact... Fact #23: Emergency! I asked today what they do if there's an emergency and there's no power. There's a big two foot thick door that separates me from the outside world. If something were to happen, the rad therapist can shut off the machine from the control area. I can shut it off by a button on the wall. I asked what would happen if there's no electricity. How do I get out of the room. Dan reassured me that I would not be stuck in there and there's a hand crank for the door. Phew. I like the escape plan. Crisis diverted.

Day 240 - Silvadene

So it's day 2 of blisters. The blister has not popped, however, last night when I was taking off the dressing on my blister, the tape took off my skin. It's left brand new pink skin open to the air and it's at risk for infection. So last night I called the on-call radiation oncologist again and asked her what to do. The area was seeping some clear liquid and I didn't know what to do. She called in a prescription for silvadene. It's a cream containing silver sulfadiazine. It's used for burn patients. It contains bacteria fighting stuff in it so the risk for infection is lower. So I am applying that to my skin once a day. A word to those going through this... DON'T USE TAPE on your radiated skin. It may take your skin with you! Tomorrow I have to go in and meet with Dr. Marquez. She told me not to use the stuff tomorrow because if I do, and they give me the thumbs up to go ahead with treatment, I won't be able to get it. Maybe they will say it's okay to continue and then the radiation therapists can just put some gauze over the affected area when they put the bolus over me.

So for the rest of today, I am walking around with my left hand on my hip so the creme doesn't come off of the "wound." Brad asked if I was walking the fashion runway. Ha! Far from it. If the blister pops, there's risk of infection and that can get into the blood and cause sepsis. That's what my mother in law has. I don't want to be in the hospital.