Leave home by 8:30 a.m. (thankfully my regular appointment time was moved from 8:15 a.m. to 8:45, and then to 9:00). Park in the special lot using my parking lot magnetic card. Then, use my patient ID key card to check in at Sibley (there's a bar code which gets read by a machine). Head to the dressing room where I put on my dressing gown (open to the back) and on top of that my robe (open to the front). Since patients being radiated can't use deodorant, it's a bit stinky in the changing room.
Then, on to the waiting area. Usually my technicians call me within a few minutes, although the other day they were delayed about 20 minutes. They bring me back to the special room with my very own linear accelerator. But first I must give then secret password (no, not "open sesame;" my birthdate). They always have pleasant music playing in there. But it is f-r-e-e-z-i-n-g. I disrobe and they put a very tight white mesh "tube top" on me, which holds the left breast in place for zapping, and keeps the right one out of the way so it doesn't get zapped.
Next, I hop onto my table. I lay on my back, and my arms are above my head in stirrups (all designed to immobilize me). My favorite part of the morning comes next - the technician brings me warm sheets to cover me, since it really is COLD in that room. They spent ten minutes or so positioning me. And I do my practice breathing. First, my cleansing breath. Then, when the technician tells me, I take a deep breath in (I count slowly to seven) and then hold, with my ribs high up, designed to keep the heart out of range of the radiation. We usually do that 3-4 times.
Finally, the technicians leave the room (they don't want to be zapped of course) and speak to me over an intercom while they watch me via a video camera. When directed, I take my cleansing breath, and tell them when I am ready. Then, deep breath in, hold (about 20 seconds), and zap.... invisible radiation waves aimed at any potential stray cancer cells. The radiation comes from the circular device which moves around me, kind of like a dental xray machine. I get nuked from two different directions - the first is above me (maybe a foot) and about a 45 degree angle to the right. The second is slightly below me and 90 degrees to my left. Each zap is about 15-20 seconds. A special sound and red light go off while the radiation is being emitted from the machine.
After, the machine and table move back into starting position, and I can bring my arms down. We remove my mesh tube top, back on with the robes, change, and leave. I'm done by 9:30 - 9:45 ish.
Here's a photo of my room:
Once a week, on Tuesdays, they take xrays to track progress, and I also meet with my dr. who assures me that all is going according to plan (at least that's what she told me yesterday).
My skin is already turning red and I'm getting stiff and swollen. But at least it's not chemo.
No comments:
Post a Comment