Daily Radiation- Actually Quite Boring

On August 5th I began my 33 days of daily radiation. I was instructed to come to Dr. Khalil's office every day at 11:00am for a 15 minute radiation session. It took longer to get to the doctors and get home than the actual session.  I assumed a "15 minute session" meant I would be sitting in the waiting room for a half hour, sitting in an exam room for 10 minutes and then have my 15 minute session. I calculated an hour to an hour and a half every day for my radiation. I was pleasantly surprised.

I had to make more changes to my routine than just making time in the middle of the day, Monday

through Friday, for the next six weeks. I also had to be very careful about anything I used on my skin in the area that was to be radiated.  I could not put anything on that had metals in it. This sounded so strange to me, it's not like I rub myself down with liquid gold or anything. I promised to keep the body glitter at bay for the next 6 weeks. However, I learned that most deodorants have aluminum in them.  So I had to go buy an unscented organic deodorant that was aluminum free. I also could not use any soaps or lotions that had fragrance, so I had to switch to Dove unscented soap.  Neither of these changes really bothered me, it was just a matter of changing my shopping habits.

Getting Ready

The first step in getting ready for radiation was to do an X-ray of the breast and lymph area where the cancerous tissue was. After all, this is most likely where it will grow back if there was any left behind. The X-ray determined within millimeters exactly where the beam of radiation was going to go. Radiation in its pure form can cause cancer so the doctor had to be extremely precise about where he pointed the beam to ensure that it killed only bad cancerous cells and not healthy cells.

Once the radiation team saw exactly where to point the beams, they noted very scientifically where to


Example of a body mold

aim every time. Then they wanted to make it easier by making sure that I laid in exactly the same position and spot every time I came in. So for this, they created a mold of me. To do this, the radiation therapists Had me lay in exactly the position they needed me to lay for radiation. They had me lay on top of  plastic polymer bag which when triggered by breaking a packet of solution inside it, got very warm and expanded to fill any gaps it found. I always used a similar product in the warehouse at work to pack boxes of breakables so that they wouldn't move during shipping. The process of making a mold didn't take long at all. And that mold would greet me on the radiation table every day for the next 6 weeks.

Next, there was a laser beam that originated in the ceiling that would form a matrix across the room when the lights were dimmed. Me and my mold were strategically placed on the radiation table and then the nurses determined where the laser matrix fell on my chest. They then gave me 3 tattooed dots in my chest to line up with 3 axis.  The dots are very small, they look like freckles, but they are black instead of brown. I will have them the rest of my life, but really only I know they are there (well, me and my radiation team).  Then the major axis was traced on my chest with a medical marker and sealed with long lasting clear medical tape. I was to not take the tape off and advise the nurses if it is coming loose for the duration of my treatments. 

In the process of tweaking me to be in the most precise position, the table was moved ever so slightly left and right until the nurses (all 3 of them) verified that 14mm has been achieved.  I have no idea what the 14mm measurement was measuring, but I just know that I had to be at 14mm before they could proceed. Once I was at 14mm, then they would raise the table until 97 was achieved.  Once this was verified, I was ready to begin.

Let's Get Started

My first day of radiation was my longest visit. I was in the office, done with treatment, and back in my car in less than 30 minutes. (YAY! A short doctor's visit!)  As soon as I checked in, I was escorted to a changing room to take off any shirts or sweaters and put on a medical gown opening in the back. I could wear my pants, sneakers, and jewelry (Except necklaces).

Then I would wait in a chair in the changing room with the door open until the person ahead of me was done getting their treatment, at which time the ladies would come in and get me. For safety reasons, before they would treat me, I would have to walk up to the computer terminal in the room and verify my name and date of birth. Just to be sure they were giving me the treatment that was really for me.  The first 2 days this made sense, but after that these ladies knew my name, my face, my kids' names, my husband's name, the names of all my wigs, and they knew which days were workout days. In short, they knew everything about me, so having to go through this routine every day was comical.... except the one day I actually got my birthday wrong and gave them my son's birthday. You will be glad to know that they actually caught it and called me on it right away... they did their job well.

Once I was verified, I would lay on a long, skinny table and pull my gown down to expose my bare


arms and chest. Then I would raise my arms above my head and fit my back, head, and arms into the mold that was on the table.  The radiation nurses would tug and push my body ever so slightly until the laser matrix that was beaming from the ceiling was lined up perfectly with the tatoo'd dots and drawn lines on my chest.  Then the radiation nurses would check the computer terminal to check what my 'lucky numbers' were. Once "14mm" and "97" were achieved, the ladies would leave the room and shut the door.

Receiving Radiation



The Radiation Machine

Just as in the picture above, radiation was administered by what looked like a giant X-ray machine. It actually did take X-rays too. The arm of the machine would start directly overhead, as in the picture. I could tell when the radiation beam was going to begin because there would be a low buzz right before it began. The buzz was similar to the sound of a washing machine after it empties its water and is just about to start the spin cycle (As I write this, I wonder if anyone in the world besides myself actually knows that sound....) When the beam begins it makes a loud thumping noise... not as loud of a noise as you hear when you get an MRI but relatively loud. The beam would hit my chest head on for about 15 seconds. Then it would stop and the arm would glide to the right and reposition itself so that it was focusing on my armpit, where the lymph nodes were removed. Then the buzz and the thumping noise.  Then the arm would move so it was right next to me on the right and again target my armpit... buzz and thumping.  At that point, the radiation nurses would come back in, raise my table about 6 inches, and leave again. The arm would then rotate under the table to attack the breast tissue through my back. Once that 15 second beam was complete, the ladies would come in, turn on the lights and let me know that I could lower my arms. The table was lowered and they would help me sit up. At that point I could get dressed and leave. The whole process was about 15 minutes.

At the first visit, Pam, the head nurse, gave me a tube of Radiaguard skin lotion. I am not sure how this was different from any other lotion, but I was instructed to apply it liberally every single day immediately after radiation. I didn't understand this because during my first treatment I learned that radiation was painless. I didn't feel or see anything. No light beams, no heat, nothing. Many days I actually wondered if there was anything coming out and if the whole concept of radiation was a farce designed to get money from insurance companies. (I had to think of something while I was there every day).  Towards week 6, I began to accept that there was truly a beam of some sort coming out, because there was a red rectangle on my chest that wrapped around under armpit and around my back. My scar on my right breast was very dark, almost purple from the radiation.  So every day at the end of my session, I would go to the changing room, slop myself all over with the Radiaguard, get dressed and go about my day.

Missing only 1 time, I came back to see my favorite nurses every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday for 33 sessions. The one time I missed was so I could attend our annual golf tournament, the Charleen Grzybowski Golf Event, in honor of my Mom.