Bowel issues in RT

Hello Pat,
There has been some conversation on here recently regarding bowels and the effects of RT so I am sure somebody will come along to help you.
I believe a low fibre diet is supposed to be helpful.
I would leave off the coffee if you can or change to organic De-caffeinated. The same goes for tea if you drink a lot of it.

If you aren't drinking much of it then might be best left alone for the time being.

I have IBS and have also had loperamide, I still take Buscopan (although that has recently been changed to Mebererine) and proctosedyl is also prescribed for people with piles.
It can be soothing if the loose bowels have irritated the skin but don't use it too much or too often as it can in itself cause problems.

I am sure that there will be help along soon so hang around until it comes

How depressing - I struggle with the notion that you were not given any dietary advice by the radiology suite prior to the RT starting. John was given a huge list of instructions including NO caffeine, NO fizzy drinks, NO alcohol and LOTS of juice / water (especially cranberry). This was to be followed until two weeks after RT ended although J has remained on decaf ever since.

A note of caution though - speak to the team before you change anything. While we are all well-meaning with our advice, there are two dietary camps for RT .... and with good reason. The majority of men on this forum seem to be told to have a high fibre diet to keep the bowel empty but some are told the opposite - a low fibre diet to minimise gas perhaps. Some are given enemas, some are not. Some are prescribed meds to keep the stools loose, some are not. What your RT suite will be keen on is not changing things too much in terms of the shape, lay and fullness of your bowel as the planning was all done on however your bowel was on that first scanning day when you got your tattoos.

Also half way through my RT, 10th session today of 20. At our clinic (5 minutes walk away...) they have been doing a pre-scan every day so can see if there are any problems in the bowels and bladder area. I have had to go on the table twice several times because I had gas in my bowels and had to have a walk around to relieve it. Found the easiest way is to sit on the loo at the time I get changed and relieve the gas then. Yesterday that did the trick, bowels were fine but my bladder was only half full so I had to drink another two glasses of water to sort that out, by which time a little more gas had come...

I thought I was heading for bowel issues last week with some 'wet f***s' and very loose movements. The specialist nurse told me to stop the laxitives (senna or cosmocol) which I did, but suggested I stayed on a high fibre diet. Good movements for a few days but still gas. At the weekend I tried going on low fibre, admittedly half heartedly by just giving up my bran flakes and brown bread - it seems to have gone the other way, verging on constipation. I will see what she says tomorrow at our weekly session.

The other problem I have had this week is having to go to the loo every hour or so to empty my bladder - I seem to be passing loads of urine starting a couple of hours after the treatment and going on till the early hours by which time it seems to be back to normal levels. No problems with the flow, that seems excellent, just the quantity. I am advised to drink the usual 2 litres of water as by the time I go for the treatment I am dehydrated so their glasses of water don't go in the bladder. Seems strange to be told to drink lots when you are passing oodles of the stuff, but guess it is a side effect of the treatment. One of the other chaps I meet down there says he has the same problem.

Pat / Dave

I too had many bladder/ bowel scans. It became quite routine towards the end of the 37 fractions.
I had problems re dehydration and some of me sessions were delayed as I had to leave the table , change and go and to reception and drink another 450ml of water.

And the gas was annoying too. Towards the end I almost felt housebound. But I still went for a walk each day, ( shorter by the end) just to clear my head.

Don't forget the radiographers have seen it all before!

John

Well for the last couple of days at the sessions they found my bowels and bladder were perfect, hope it lasts. I have taken to drinking a couple of beakers of squash during the morning to sort out the dehydration. The specialist nurse advised me to go back to my normal diet provided I didn't eat too much broccoli and cabbage (which I don't anyway). There seems a fine line between being constipated and diarrhoea and they would far prefer the latter to constipation. This morning after a couple of days of constipation I have gone towards the other end having had my wholemeal sandwiches last night...

Hi

I've just had fraction 24 today and have had some bowel problems since around fraction 8, but very little problem with the bladder, so far. I'm sure others will let you know their experiences but it seems that most of us get some issues but they don't have to be too horrendous. Follow any advice given to you by your treatment team and be prepared to make some changes to your routine etc during treatment. There are various medications available from the team that may help with some of the issues.

Good luck with your treatment.