Dragging our Feet

The last day of radiation is supposed to be Monday, June 15th.  The first day of radiation and chemo was on April 28th.

What a long long time.
I'm sure it is not as long as some folks have treatments for other cancers.

For me?  I am getting close to never caring if I drive again to Madison, or park in the UW's parking garage or even see the doors to the VA Hospital.

I am weary of the drive.  Even with the short breaks while Rich was in the hospital or those times when his daughter had him, it feels like it has been forever.

Which, of course is not true at all.

Rich's neck looks nasty and it is hot as mentioned in the previous post.  We've been applying lotion and cool compresses to try and ease the burning sensation.

Eating by mouth is a bit of a challenge, but he is still doing it.  Yesterday we had a great lunch at Grandma Mary's in Arena, WI.  

We often stop there on our way back from Madison as it gives us a break.

This morning was a tough one so far.  Neither one of us wanted to get up and get going.  I'm still delaying going out to do the chores.  I'm bone tired in some ways I feel beyond tired.

Rich feels the same way and his neck just burns.  I put lotion on it and he sat still.  I'm using gloves now even though I've washed my hands well.  I don't want to cause an infection anywhere on his neck by accident.

Dr. Witek says his neck will keep cooking for a while after radiation is done.
I've read on message boards that this time [depending on the person] can be up to 6 weeks.

They say: 'Radiation, the gift that keeps on giving [or burning]'. 

I guess the positive things to look at are ... the daily trips are nearly over.
Radiation is nearly over.

And then what?
Life after treatment?
Will our lives ever become normal again?

Oh I hope so.

Chores are waiting.  And we leave for another day of 'fun and adventure' in an hour.

Tonight though, I'm going to go pick up Morris and bring him back home.
We need his silly face.

Hot neck

The radiation sure is causing Rich's neck to be sore not only on the inside, but also on the outside.

I am amazed at how reddish dark the neck is where he is getting the RAD treatments.

We asked Dr. Witek on Friday if we could use cool compresses to ease some of the heat and pain on the outside of the neck.

He grinned and said I could stick Rich's head in the freezer...he paused and looked at Rich..."and shut the door!"  We all laughed.

But the cool compress does work.  We have to remember though to continuously keep the radiated skin moisturized.  Rich likes Lubriderm the best.

At this point the skin is an angry purple - red color, the sort of color you would expect to see on a severe sun burn.

Outside Rich wears a wide brimmed hat and a cloth to shade the back of his neck.  The skin is very sensitive to the sun and will be for quite a while.

Tonight I made an odd mix of foods for supper.  I pan sauteed a sirloin tip steak and then cut it into extremely thin strips.  I sauteed mushrooms and added that to the strips.
Rich wanted some beans, so I added them to the mix and let the ingredients just come to a light simmer.

The sirloin steak was so incredibly tender and tasty.  The mushrooms mixed with the steak and beans actually tasted wonderful.  Rich was able to take the thin strips and cut them smaller so it was easy to swallow.  

Well, there you go.  Dr. Witek told him weeks ago to forget steaks for a while.
I guess we showed him!

Tips:
Stay out of the sun with radiated skin...it will hurt.
Cool compresses help... A LOT
Peppermint tea and honey...cool it off and drink, helps with the sore throat
Lots of lotion...as often as you can do it.
Unscented very very mild soap...don NOT scrub it.
For guys: do not shave the area!
No ICE packs, cool to moderately cold compresses.

Hint:  Take a cloth and rinse in cool water.  After it is done, put the cloth in a zip lock baggy and stick it in the fridge to keep it cool.


While at home, take a t-shirt and cut around the neck so the material is not rubbing on the burned skin.

After we are done today... Next Monday is the last day of Radiation!
Who is counting?
We are!