Radiation Marking

Well today was a long day. I arrived at my appointment at 1:15 to find out that the receptionist gave me the wrong time and it was actually at 3:15. They told me to put on a gown and housecoat and wait and they would see if they could fit me in. Well they didn't and they were even behind schedule. So after waiting for 2 1/2 hours they finally took me in. We had a little information session first. I learned things like I cannot use soap or lotion on the radiated area, I must put baby powder on it every day, can only wear cotton clothing directly against the skin and other little do's and don'ts. Then they took me into a radiation marking room. I had to lay on a cold hard table with a rotating X-ray machine above me. They put my arm in a cradle like thing that supported my arm above my head and wouldn't let it move. They start making lines with a Sharpie pen and taking mearsurments and lining up the X-ray machine to get all the beams lined up to where they want to do the radiation. It took about 45 minutes of 4 people working out all the measurements. Half way through my hand and arm were asleep. When they were complete my chest, neck and shoulder look a lot like Frankenstein. These balck lines need to stay on until the whole radiation process is complete - did I mention that that was 5 weeks. No T-shirt is going to hide all these lines. Then they had to make 4 points even more permanent by tattoo them. This was done by putting some dark brown dye on my skin and then taking a needle, poking the skin and lifting it up so that the die could run under the skin. The first 3 were OK but the last one hurt and I cried. Once I started crying I couldn't stop. It was a build up of waiting so long, a tingling arm, pain from the needle and the unknowness of the node.

After they were done I had a chance to talk to the radiation oncologist. I ask about doing a biopsy on the node. He said it was too small to do with a needle and that they would have to do it surgically. He suggested waiting to see if there was a change in the size after the radiation. I was too exhausted to argue but will take it up with my medical oncolgist on the 29th.

A long day with few high points.