My top tips for treatment (please add)

Just some silly pointers really for chemoradiation treatment. Things that make life easier

Wear slip on shoes. You need to take your shoes of for radiotherapy so anything easy to put on/take on makes a speedier exit

Wear jogging bottoms or leggings. Again these need to be lowered to expose your pelvic area (it gets covered with a paper towel) so anything that just easily slips up and down is the best idea

Chemo days take a shawl or something to put over your arm as it may get cold

Take your phone charger to the hospital in case if delays

I have found a she wee and empty bottle in the car invaluable. You need to drink a lot and I often find just the walk from the hospital to the car and Im bursting again.
I also sometimes have a long drive so having the reassurance of it in the car with me helps

I wear tena lady knickers on chemo days just in case I don’t quite make it to the loo on time (been ok so far)

Take magazine and snacks on chemo days as is a long day. I have a 4 hour wait between my radiotherapy and chemo so I found the local park and try to go for at least an hours walk to kill time but also stretch my legs.

Always have a bottle of water, my hospital has water fountains all over so I top up as much as possible

Blood test days, make sure you are hydrated, it’s easier to get a vein also make sure if this when you go for your radiotherapy tattoos. They struggled to canulate me for that. I think it took 8 attempts.

Have a drink of water by your bed at night

Make sure you have money in your bag at all times. My car park is £1.50 per day plus you never know if you want a coffee or something.

Pack a bag for chemo the night before. You might even want to take slippers.

That’s all I can think of for now but please feel free to add x

Brilliant! Drinking liquid aloe vera may well help to reduce digestive side-effects of radiotherapy, and even if it doesn't it doesn't do you any harm. This is not the cheap drink that contains traces of aloe vera but the real thing.

The shawl is a great idea because getting warm clothes on and off with a canula in your arm can be painful as well as difficult or simply awkward.

Thanks Philleepa for these tips I will certainly write a list as my memory is really poor. Can you believe you are on your last week of Chemo Rad and have got through it after all the worry and torment? I will be cheering you on and wishing you all the very best you are a champion. lots of love xxxxxxxxxxx

2 more

 

Try to get early appointments for radiotherapy - less time for delays

Keep a journal of side effects so you can tell your nurse x it's easy to forget when something happened and how long fir x 

Baby wipes have been handy for me over the last couple of days since I have had piles. 

Try to get appointments on the same day as your treatment and close to the time. I have had a couple of appointments that would have meant an extra journey on another day or a long wait at the hospital,  just asking the nurse and she has changed the appointment for me to make it convenient. 

 

Also to add:

* if you lose you appetite don't panic! Just eat as much as you can as and when you can, if it lasts more than a couple of days and or your being sick also phone the hospital for advice

* sleep as much as you can because fighting it wont work - sleep always wins! The amount of times I woke up and didn't realise I'd fallen asleep is unreal!

* have someone to help you with cleaning, shopping, paying bills etc as you may feel like you can do it all but you soon realise you can't. You need all your energy to beat thos

* don't think that someone's experience has been bad that yours will be, each person is different. Don't panic and stress

* if you lose your hair you lose your hair, it grows back! Mine has and I've had to have it trimmed and it needs cutting again - it only started growing in August!

* you'll have loads of weird aches and pains don't worry - if they persist speak to your doctor or nurse 

Hi I just wanted to say thank you ladies for this advice. I've read all through Phileepa's diary which was really helpful to hear about her experience and the response from other ladies. Following Rad hysterectomy, lymph node removal & ovarian transposition I will start 5 weeks of chemoradiotherapy next week.

One thing I have been thinking about is my diet. I generally eat quite healthily but was wondering if there is anything I should eat or avoid. I've read about fibre affecting bowels but I can't work out of that means I should eat more or avoid? 

I suppose I'm just scared of what is to come.. 

big hugs to you all xx

ps sorry about grammar! 

 

 

Also sorry to ask but I've read that a lot of people don't lose their hair. Carmel do you mind me asking which drug you were on for chemo? I have my appt tomo to find out my treatment plan and I'm really nervous about losing my hair.. xx

Hi. I'm glad my diary has helped. 

From what I can gather everyone reacts differently. I personally think I may have cut out my fibre too quickly as I have been more constipated than the other way. 

I'd say just see how it goes. 

 

Cisplatin doesn't make you lose your hair That seems to be what most ladies with cc have x 

 

Thanks Philleepa xx

I never thought I'm going to take a wee cover with me tomorrow xx

Hello Ladies,

I'm due to start my treatment on Monday (8th Feb) and have been trying to drink as much as possible...about 3 lts per day. I notice that most people have said that they drink around 4 lt per day....is that just water or does that include other drinks eg milk, tea, smoothies etc. Also, I had beed "juicing" all the usual anti-cancer recipes but was advised that I will have to stop this when I start the chemradiation as they all are based on raw veg and I should only be taking well cooked veg!!! So many rules to remember lol

Thanks

Pauline x

 

Hi Pauline.  I've been told it's all liquids,  including soups and milk used in breakfast cereal.  I found it really hard as I was on the loo all the time. I am on around 21/2 -3 now and I find it much easier. 

I also had the juices and stopped straight away once i started treatment.  I'm not sure if this contributed to me being a bit constipated at the beginning so maye it should have been done gradually.  I'm not sure.

I hope your treatment goes well x 

Thanks Philleepa,

I've had a look at some of your posts....you really seem to handle things really well. Hope I can handle them as good.

x

 

Hi Hun, I can't remember I didn't really pay any attention to what was going on I think I was still in shock, plus I couldn't really hear what the doctor was saying as I am partially deaf.

if your hair comes out or thins don't worry it tends to happen more or less in one go, it was a relief not having to shave or wash my hair for a while :-)

i have advanced cancer so I had a mixture but a lot of the ladies at lower grading kept theirs xx

I think everyone is constipated I was really bad but once things started moving so to speak I was fine.....although the radio had the opposite effect!

i have found drinking water, walking around a little bit and drinking pro biotic drinks help xx

Thanks Carmel. 

I've gone back to my normal diet (short term) and it seems to have done the job! Radio nurse said that I may not geel the urge from Mon-Wed/Thu due to chemo but should go the opposite way the rest of the week so I'm just going to take each day at a time and listen to my own body.

I had bought some Yakult drinks but have been too scared to drink them due to reading that they may interfer with chemo....have you heard anything about this?

Hope you're doing well x

Hi. I was told by the chemo nurse not to drink thingslike that.  Also to stay away from green tea x although someone said it was served on their chemo ward. Basically I've been told to stay away from antioxidants but that wasn't a health professional,  it was by someone on one of the facebook forums.

I had been taking vitamins to boost my immunity but the brachytherapy Dr told me not to.  I drink echinacea tea though