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Radiotherapy stinging/burning. My imagination?

User
Posted 15 Mar 2024 at 12:17

Hi everyone

I have just completed my second radiotherapy session and am sure I could feel it burning and stinging me. I mentioned it to the radiographer who said that it was my imagination! Has anyone else experienced anything like this?

Alan

 

User
Posted 15 Mar 2024 at 16:15

Al, I thought I could feel something similar on the odd occasion.

Thanks Chris 

User
Posted 15 Mar 2024 at 17:54

I wondered this too. The electron target where the X-rays are generated probably gets hot, and I wondered if it might be red-hot or more, radiating heat out of the aperture too. I wasn't going to stick my head underneath to have a look!

I also had HDR Brachytherapy, which was 15Gy delivered directly into the prostate over 10½ minutes in my case. (An external beam radiotherapy session delivers 2-3Gy in about 2 mins.) I was told I wouldn't feel anything, but I did. There was a stinging sensation which gradually built up in intensity over the 10 mins. Initially, I was worried in case it got too much to bare, but it didn't, but it was definitely there.

User
Posted 16 Mar 2024 at 01:02
I think it affects men with pale skin more than men with dark skin. A bit like having a bit too much sun. You will need to use sunblock on your midriff area if you are sunbathing in the Summer.
"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Soren Kierkegaard

User
Posted 16 Mar 2024 at 11:26

Just a warning not to misinterpret Lyn's post and apply sunblock during treatment, that may stop some x-rays which would be bad news. 

I didn't notice any sensations whilst having RT. I know that if I get sunburnt and later wash my hands in hot water it really stings, so our sensitivity to heat definitely changes, and we can be super sensitive to heat.

Andy's post suggesting it was from the LINAC getting 'red hot' made me curious. I've linked to a couple of documents discussing power consumption. To save you having to read them it seems a LINAC takes 14kW of power to deliver the x-rays but the x-ray beam is only 17watts(can't find my link for that) so nearly all the energy is heating up the tungsten target, it will definitely get red hot. The tungsten is behind an awful lot of shielding and will have a cooling system. There is one aperture the 'size of a walnut' for the x-rays and heat, not removed by the cooling system, to escape; the LINAC is about 3 feet from your skin. 

I would guess only about 100watts of infrared and UV are getting to you during treatment, that might be enough that you would feel it.

For anyone interested in the CO2 cost of being treated here are the links.

https://www.ipem.ac.uk/media/wthiszvq/speaker-2-catherine-stanford-edwards.pdf

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2452109422002755

 

Dave

User
Posted 16 Mar 2024 at 16:36

Originally Posted by: Online Community Member
Just a warning not to misinterpret Lyn's post and apply sunblock during treatment, that may stop some x-rays which would be bad news.

Oh Lord, yes! Sunblock when sunbathing in sunny Malaga 😎 post-RT, not sunblock while sunbathing in the RT suite 😖

"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Soren Kierkegaard

 
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