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| Treatment Questions
What side effects can I expect?
Side effects are related to site being radiated. Certain side effects are seen with most types of radiation therapy and go away a few weeks after radiation therapy has finished.
These are the most common side effects expirenced:
Fatigue: You may have some fatigue, usually noticeable after a few weeks of radiotherapy. You should still be able to do all your normal activities, though you may not be able to do them for as long. You may require an additional nap in the afternoon towards the end of treatment and will require more hours of sleep at night.
Sunburning of skin: You may notice your skin becoming dry, itchy, and red. This is seen about 4 weeks into treatment and most noticeable on patients receiving radiation for head and neck cancers or breast cancers. You may purchase some alcohol-free aloe-vera gel prior to beginning radiation treatment. You can start applying the gel to the site where radiation will be given. Do not apply the gel before your daily radiation treatments; instead apply it after your treatment.
Hair loss: This will be limited to the area under treatment. Unless you are receiving chemotherapy or brain radiation, you will not lose the hair on you head.
Loss of appetite: This can happen for a multitude of reasons. The best thing you can do is to take in as many calories as possible. Because you have cancer and are receiving radiation therapy, your body's caloric demand is much greater than normal. This means that you have to eat more than before just to maintain your weight. The best way to do this is to eat many small meals throughout the day. Supplement this with high calorie drinks like Boost or Ensure.
The National Cancer Institute has a great review on how to manage eating during radiation.
(http://www.nci.nih.gov/cancerinfo/eatinghints)
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