Welcome to OCF, Rick! You have found the very best place to get info and support to help you get thru your upcoming battle and recovery. Our site is made up of fellow patients/survivors and caregivers so we know what its like to go thru this. Its not easy but it can be done! The very best thing you can do is to focus on your intake starting right now. Every single day up until (at the very least) you hit your one year post rads mark take in a minimum of 2500 calories and 48-64 oz of water. Water intake is especially important for patients who are getting chemo, you need to flush that poison out of your body. I didnt do the best with my intake during rads and suffered way more than I had to because of it. I wouldnt want to see you or anyone else struggle without understanding how vitally a patients intake is during rads and recovery.

Prior to starting your treatments your doc should do a full blood panel including thyroid and testosterone levels. Down the road, its common for patients who had rads to have problems with their thyroid and testosterone levels. By having baseline numbers on file of what they should be for you, it will help your docs to make it easier to prescribe the proper dose of meds to stabilize your thyroid and testosterone levels.

This site is full of medical info all about OC, treatments and recovery. I suggest reading to learn about it so you can be a stronger advocate for yourself when going thru rads. An educated patient is a strong patient!

Anyone who offers their assistance tell them when the time comes you will let them know what they can do to help. Too often well-meaning friends and relatives want to help but they dont know what to do. When going thru rads, may patients are not able to drive to their treatments. Transportation, picking up prescriptions from the pharmacy, doing a load of laundry, walking the dog, cutting the grass, are just a few of the many things your 'helpers' can do to help make it easier on you.

Stick with us and we will help get you thru whatever you may be facing.

Christine
SCC 6/15/07 L chk & by L molar both Stag I, age44
2x cispltn-35 IMRT end 9/27/07
-65 lbs in 2 mo, no caregvr
Clear PET 1/08
4/4/08 recur L chk Stag I
surg 4/16/08 clr marg
215 HBO dives
3/09 teeth out, trismus
7/2/09 recur, Stg IV
8/24/09 trach, ND, mandiblctmy
3wks medicly inducd coma
2 mo xtended hospital stay, ICU & burn unit
PICC line IV antibx 8 mo
10/4/10, 2/14/11 reconst surg
OC 3x in 3 years
very happy to be alive smile