The Dry Run

Today I went to the doctor's office for my dry run of my radiation treatment. I arrived at the doctor's office a little early because I wasn't sure about the morning rush hour traffic. I ended up waiting for an hour to see the radiation technicians, but hey, at least I wasn't late. Once I was called, the radiation technicians showed me where I would be going each time for my treatment. I got to finally see the room where I will be receiving the radiation. The room looks like your standard hospital room, but with a bed and a large machine right in the middle. I was surprised to see just how big the radiation machine really is! I guess it makes sense since pieces of the machine rotate around my body, and the radiation beams come at my tonsil from 9 different angles.

The radiation technicians then wanted to make sure all the beams were situated in the correct positions, so I laid down on the bed and they did a trial run, with no real radiation beams of course. I had to wear that mask I made the other week, and boy was that uncomfortable. The mask fits so tightly around my face and shoulders that I got claustrophobic a few times. The mask is so tight that I can't even open and close my eyes or even move my lips. So as you can imagine being that confined for any period of time is a little discomforting. During the test I noticed each piece of the machine rotated around my body and made different loud noises at various positions. The good news though is the test went correctly and it didn't take too long. The actually radiation (starting tomorrow) will be longer, but at least I know a little of what I can expect for the real thing.

After the dry run I then met with one of the clinic's nurses. The nurse took my blood and explained some of the side effects I will be experiencing from the radiation. Two side effects that we talked about were fatigue and skin damage to my face and neck. Often times radiation patients will experience emotional, mental and physical fatigue from the treatment. The nurse says the best way for me to handle the fatigue is to take naps and rest when I feel tired- seems pretty basic to me. She also says the radiation beams can cause itching, redness, and irritation to my skin, almost like a really bad sunburn. She gave me some products to try during my treatment and told me I should apply them to my face and neck about 3 times a day.

So tomorrow is the big day when I'll actually be starting my radiation treatment. I'll be meeting with my oncologist first and then in the afternoon I'll be receiving my first radiation treatment. I'm little nervous, but I do feel better after today's dry run. At least now I know where to go and what the room and the machine look like. I'm curious to see when I'll start to feel some of the side effects from the radiation. I think I won't notice them until a little later, but I'm not sure. I'll make sure to keep track.
Danielle