Does anyone have information on how long after radiation treatment of the mouth to wait for kissing and sex? Can radiation be transferred to another person? Or is it just determined by patient comfort level?

Radiation cannot be transferred or passed along to another person in any way. it is exactly the same thing as an x-ray, only uch more powerful and directional.

Post radiation, the only limitation is feeling well enough to snuggle. Obviously, it's hard to feel romantic when you have a mouth full of moucositis and a syste full of morphine to combat the pain
Wayne

Debora,

I know that radiation is not contagious. I think it would be determined by comfort level.

Isn't it always

Tim Stoj

There is only one exception that I can think of to what Wayne said. Some of us had brachytherapy (a radiation implant, where radiation is surgically placed in the area of the tumor and left there for a period of hours or days). For the duration of brachytherapy (because of federal regulations governing radiation exposure), the patient has to be in an isolation room, and contact with other human beings -- including nurses -- is strictly limited to very short time periods. For the 30 hours that I had an implant, my husband was allowed to visit my room for a maximum of about 10 minutes. However, as soon as the radiation seeds were removed from my mouth, I ceased to be "radioactive" and had no restrictions on contact with other people.

Cathy

WELL WOULDN"T YOU KNOW IT WOULD TAKE A QUESTION ABOUT SEX TO GET MY FRIEND TIM BACK IN THE LOOP(HA-HA)

Deborah if I'm not mistaken it's been about 6 months since your husband dx. It's interesting that you bring this topic up because I have had one night of passionate kissing in the seven years since my treatment and I vomited right after. I guess I'm self- concious about my dry mouth and thick secretions so I no longer Kiss. My condition has not kept me from sex but oddly enough I still need my water bottle next to me even for that. Well I,m usually the one with the sense of humor and I really had to refrain with this post but feel free and wail away folks.

Where did you ever get this silly idea? It is bad enough that we can't eat, drink or taste anything for a while after about two weeks of radiation, now you want us to give up sex too? I think not. Other than the treatment that Cathy pointed out, I don't remember anyone being told not to have sex even during radiation. So go ahead and enjoy.

Eileen

Deb,

THE ONLY THING THAT I ENJOYED DURING MY JOURNEY THROUGH THE DARK TUNNEL WAS MAKING LOVE WITH MY WIFE. Now I didn't always feel "up" to it but when I did, it was full steam ahead. I did complain towards the end of Tx that I had lost my sex drive but I soon found it again. Discuss this with your H so that your wires don't get crossed when the urge hits him because for a while during Tx the mood doesn't last to long.

Mark,

I figured you'd be all over this topic :p

Tim

Tim and Tony it kills me to have to do this but I'm going to have to pass the title of Ladies man over to our good friend Davidcpa and at 58 yrs. old to, You 2 should be ashamed of yourself. As far as you David keep "up" the good work.

What do you who suffer from the dry mouth post Tx think about the kissing part?
Is it uncomfortable?
Ginny