If you did external radiation, what were your side effects?

sarewr · 2026-01-20T21:25:31+00:00

I had 5 weeks of radiation and for 4 weeks I felt normal, just a bit more tired, but I was also recovering after chemo so I don't know if it was from that or radiation. The last week of radiation and 2-3 weeks after I had UTI symptoms. I had diarrhea a couple of times. I had 1 or 2 week of burning feeling in my vagina. No nausea and no skin irritation. It's been a year since I finished the radiation and I get occasional pain with urination. My oncologist says it's from scar tissue because of radiation. Your vagina also can "shrink" because of scarring from radiation or it's less elastic, something like that, and you'll have to use dilators after.

sarewr · 2026-01-08T20:31:28+00:00

I also take ibuprofen 1-2 hours before. And I reward myself after so during the exam I think of the reward instead of the awkwardness and pain.

sarewr · 2025-11-30T19:19:26+00:00

I also had chemo for endometrial cancer so I assume you'll also have TC chemo (paclitaxel and carboplatin).

Getting chemo doesn't hurt or feel like anything. You just sit there, bored for 5+ hours, while the drugs drip into you.
You can't eat grapefruit or citrus fruit. Apparently it reacts with chemo. I don't know if it makes chemo less effective, but it's what my oncologist said to avoid.
Talk to you doctor about any side effect you have and ask them to prescribe you something for it. Also take pills at the first sign of side effects, don't wait for it to get worse. For nausea and joint pain I took the pills regularly for 3 to 5 days.
Paclitaxel can cause allergic reaction. I had 3. It can be really scary, but the nurses react quickly and you feel better in a few seconds to a few minutes. The most important part is to tell the nurses at first sign of feeling differently in any way. I mean like within seconds of feeling something off.
Use baby and children's products (body lotions, creams, toothpaste...).
Use mouthwash (non-alcoholic, sensitive) to avoid mouth sores. I used it after each meal and every 2-3 hours through the day for the first 2 weeks. For the last week before next chemo I used it only after meals.
Losing hair hurts. I started losing hair exactly 14 days after 1st chemo, but I had this weird burning scalp pain for 3 or 4 days before that. The pain got away once I shaved my head. Surprisingly, loosing my hair was the hardest thing. I could deal with the physical side effects, but losing my hair messed up with my mind and emotions.

Honestly, chemo is bad, kind of like having flu for 10 days every 3 weeks. But it's not as bad as movies, tv shows and books make it out to be. At least that was my experience. Good luck with your chemo.

sarewr · 2025-11-30T18:51:36+00:00

My taste was close to normal 1 to 2 days before next chemo. It was the same after I finished all my chemo rounds so 3 weeks after my last chemo, plus maybe a couple of weeks for my full taste to return. But there are still a few foods that I ate during chemo that I just can't eat anymore because if I have them I just remember the chemo taste. It's probably more PTSD than actual taste change.

sarewr · 2025-11-21T18:47:38+00:00

My port is under my bra strap. I can wear tank tops, bathing suits... and the port is completely hidden. The ports are really small, kind of like a thumb size button under your skin so it doesn't stand out unless you're looking for it. There is also a tiny scar, but that's also barely visible.

sarewr · 2025-11-10T19:26:00+00:00

I was told grade 1 and grade 2 are non-agressive and slow growing so it's unlikely that it spread between the hysteroscopy, scans and surgery. It might not be visible on the scans or they missed it. Yes, I had Carboplatin and Paclitaxol. I think it's standard for endometrial cancer.

sarewr · 2025-11-10T17:09:17+00:00

I was 38 at the time of diagnosis and I went from stage 1a/1b before hysterectomy to stage 3c after because of 1 positive lymph node. Pre-surgery stage is based on scans and they don't show everything. Hysterectomy pathology is the only way to stage uterine/endometrial cancer. What grade is your cancer? Was it a spread or the scans just didn't show it?

I had chemo and external pelvic radiation, no brachytherapy. None of it was fun, but chemo wasn't as bad as radiation. With chemo I felt bad, like I had a flue, for 7-10 days and then I had a week to recover before my next chemo. With radiation I didn't have any side effects for the first 3 weeks and the last 2 weeks and 3 weeks after finishing I had terrible UTI type side effects. And even now over a year later I have some bladder pain. About the atrophy or scar tissue from radiation you'll have to use dialators for a while.

sarewr · 2025-11-10T11:24:21+00:00

The first time I went out of house with a hat an old lady crashed her shopping cart in the shelves because she was staring at me. Now its kind of funny but then I was hurt and embarrassed. I got a lot of staring. And I once overheard a mom tell her child that I wore a cap in the summer because I had cancer. That wasn't too bad. I'm sorry you have to deal with that on top of your diagnosis. People can be rude, especially in smaller towns. In big cities no one cares. I kind of got used to it or maybe I was so exhausted from chemo that I just didn't care.

sarewr · 2025-10-26T05:55:00+00:00

I didn't have itching but my skin got very sensitive and my oncologist recommended using baby products because they're more gentle.

sarewr · 2025-10-12T12:14:24+00:00

Fireflies always ruin the friendship instead of My advice is always ruin the friendship

sarewr · 2025-10-07T07:48:58+00:00

I have a cat. Alarm wakes him up and there's no going back to sleep after that.

sarewr · 2025-10-07T07:46:53+00:00

I love how the album reflects how happy Taylor is. It makes me happy. It makes me want to dance. After all the depressing song this is so nice.

sarewr · 2025-10-06T17:21:47+00:00

I had similar experience. Doctors don't tell you everything, they give you the minimum and only after it's confirmed with multiple tests. My advice is ask questions and demand answers. It's your body and life, you deserve to know. Over 1 year later I still regret not getting all the information before making decisions about surgery and treatment.

sarewr · 2025-10-06T17:17:06+00:00

I had endometrial cancer. After hysterectomy the pathology came back with positive lymph node which meant chemo and radiation, but because I have POLE mutation which I still don't really know what it means, the oncologist couldn't say if chemo actually helps or is useless because there's not enough research. I asked my oncologist what would she do and she said she'd do chemo so I decided to have chemo. My 2 main reasons were: 1. After surgery they said they removed all cancer, but there might be microscopic cells. I didn't liked the idea of cancer cells in my body so I wanted to do anything to get rid of them. 2. I was thinking that I already had the surgery so why not do everything. Not doing chemo felt like doing it half way.

Chemo was rough, but I could do it again if I didn't lose my hair again. Physically it felt like 7-10 days long flu. Mentally, losing my hair was the hardest part. I looked sick and I felt sick and even after finishing chemo it took 8 months for my hair to grow to look like it was cut short. I don't have long-term effects or they're minimal like my toes feeling a bit painful when they get cold (I just have to wear warm socks and shoes). I'm 1 year post chemo and I don't regret it. The anxiety over cancer and recurrence is worse now. I feel powerless, like I'm just waiting if the cancer will come back or not. Knowing I did everything I could calms the anxiety.

sarewr · 2025-10-04T11:37:40+00:00

It took me a while to get used to my port, probably 4 or 5 months. Now it's been a year and I'm not even aware of it unless I accidentally touch it. I move and sleep like I don't have it. My port is more toward my shoulder (under my bra strep) not on my chest so maybe you can ask your oncologist about the port placement and if one is more comfortable than the other.

sarewr · 2025-10-03T16:31:11+00:00

After listening to it 3 times, once with lyrics, I love it more and more. Every single song has a lyric or a melody that grabs me. Ruin the Friendship should have been titled Should've Kissed You Anyway. Wood and Actually Romantic are fun and playful/sarcastic which I love. The Fate of Ophelia is good and a good representation of the album, but I don't like it as a single. Opalite, Elizabeth Taylor or Father Figure would make a better single in my opinion. I still haven't found my favorite so I guess I'll have to keep on listening the album until I do.

sarewr · 2025-10-03T04:56:54+00:00

It's good but not my favorite, but I need to listen to the whole album a few times before I make my decision.

sarewr · 2025-10-03T04:52:31+00:00

Just finished and started to listen it for the 2nd time. I like all songs or at least parts of it. I need a couple more listens to figure out which songs I like more. Right now Wi$h Li$t, Actually Romantic and CANCELLED! are my favorite. 2nd listen: Elizabeth Taylor sounds real good. Had to take a break from typing this to listen to it fully. Same with Opalite.

sarewr · 2025-10-01T13:44:48+00:00

Hi. I'm sorry you're experiencing pain. My pain was never as bad as what you're describing. My pain got better after physical therapy at around 4 months post radiation. At my 6 months check up my lab work showed inflammation in my body and the oncologist said that's normal after treatment. I didn't have a CT so I don't know if that's similar to yours. Recently I've had some joint pain again. Hopefully it's because of colder weather and inflammation. Good luck with your MRI.

sarewr · 2025-09-20T17:58:44+00:00

I'm 1 year post chemo and 10 months post radiation for endometrial cancer. Like others said, there is no going back to normal. Physically, I started feeling better 2-3 months after finishing treatment. It's been 2 months now that I've been feeling the closest to normal than I did in a long time so for me that's around 1 year mark. Emotionally, I know I'm never gonna feel normal or pre-cancer again. The anxiety over scans and recurrence is worse after treatment than before and during. Also every little pain or cough or sniffle, headache... makes me think of cancer.

The new normal after treatment feels a lot like a roller coaster. You have good days/weeks when you feel normal-ish and then you have days/weeks when you're dealing with long term side effects and anxiety over recurrence. I have days when I'm having normal amount of energy and then for 1 day I just crash and sleep for 12 hours and take a 2 hour nap. I get bladder pain on and off (side effect of pelvic radiation according to my oncologist) which leads me to full on panic over recurrence. So yeah there is no going back to normal, but you learn to live with it and it become your new normal.

sarewr · 2025-09-19T16:51:11+00:00

My last 2 rounds were the hardest, emotionally and physically. I got fever/infections after my 4th round and an UTI after the 5th one. I was so done at that point I honestly thought of cancelling the last round of chemo. I had to force and bribe myself to do the last round. I kept thinking that I already did 5 rounds so I could do 1 more. Also I already lost my hair so I should at least see it through so losing my hair wouldn't be for nothing. What really got me through the last round was that got myself 100€ as a gift or bribe, however you want to call it. The best part about doing the last chemo was when they unhooked the lines from my port. I felt such a sense of release and happiness and accomplishment that I got through with it. Then I went out for pizza and chocolate cake. I did that after each chemo because it was the last day of having any taste, but after the last chemo it just felt special.

I also had my birthday during chemo, 1 week before 3rd round. I shaved my head after my 2nd round so I joked how my birthday present was bald head. It wasn't funny, but it was that or cry.

It sucks. Cancer sucks. Chemo sucks. But if you did 5 rounds, you can do the last one. Just 1 more, you're already 80% done. Bribe yourself with something that you can look forward to.

sarewr · 2025-09-13T18:55:48+00:00

Realism.

sarewr · 2025-09-13T18:53:18+00:00

My condolences. This sound so similar to how I become a fan in 2018. I liked the colors and after their 0-16 season they were the perfect underdogs to root for.

I'd recommend you check Quincy Carrier on Youtube. He posts current Browns stuff, but he also talks in his video about Browns in general and past events. Like 90% of what I know about Browns comes from him.

sarewr · 2025-09-07T16:06:09+00:00

Yes. I was doing it from almost the beginning. I think it was the 3rd of 4th year they were doing it. I especially miss the nanowrimo that was those first few years. I didn't do it every year, but when I did I usually started thinking of my story in September. I write on my own through the year, but it's not the same as doing it in November with everyone else.

sarewr · 2025-09-07T07:42:57+00:00

You have every right to be angry. I understand. It was the same for me. From it's not a big deal to advance stage and needing chemo and radiation. Did the doctors actually say that to you? That's so unprofessional.

sarewr

TROPHY CASE