Most side effects go away within a few months of ending treatment. Some side effects may continue after treatment ends because it takes time for the healthy cells to recover from radiation.
Most side effects generally go away within a few weeks to 2 months of finishing treatment. But some side effects may continue after treatment is over because it takes time for healthy cells to recover from the effects of radiation therapy. Late side effects can happen months or years after treatment.
The tiredness often reaches its maximum 1 to 2 weeks after the end of treatment. A small number of people are asleep for a lot of the day after a long course of radiotherapy to the brain. This called somnolence syndrome.
Healthy cells that are damaged during radiation treatment usually recover within a few months after treatment is over. But sometimes people may have side effects that do not improve. Other side effects may show up months or years after radiation therapy is over. These are called late effects.
These delayed effects can include serious problems such as memory loss, stroke-like symptoms, and poor brain function. You may also have an increased risk of having another tumor in the area, although this is not common. Talk with your cancer care team about what to expect from your specific treatment plan.
Some people who receive radiation therapy experience dryness, itching, blistering, or peeling on the skin in the area being treated. Skin changes from radiation therapy usually go away a few weeks after treatment ends. If skin damage becomes a serious problem, your doctor may change your treatment plan.
Weight loss during radiotherapy and one month after treatment. During radiotherapy, 46 (65.7%) patients lost weight, with a mean weight loss of (4.73 ± 3.91) kg, which corresponded to a (6.55 ± 4.84)% net reduction from their baseline weights.
You may experience fatigue if cancer treatment damages healthy cells in addition to the cancer cells. Or fatigue might happen as your body works to repair damage caused by treatment. Some treatment side effects — such as anemia, nausea, vomiting, pain, insomnia and changes in mood — also may cause fatigue. Anemia.
Radiotherapy is usually given as a number of individual treatments delivering a small dose of radiation daily over several weeks. Most people have 5 treatments a week (one treatment a day from Monday to Friday), with a break at the weekend.
Avoid raw vegetables and fruits, and other hard, dry foods such as chips or pretzels. It's also best to avoid salty, spicy or acidic foods if you are experiencing these symptoms. Your care team can recommend nutrient-based oral care solutions if you are experiencing mucositis or mouth sores caused by cancer treatment.
Often the side effects are worse at the end of treatment, or even a week or two afterwards, because it takes time for the healthy cells to recover from radiation. Most side effects are temporary and go away in time, usually within a few weeks of treatment finishing.
Breast cancer: Women with breast cancer have an overall 30% chance of recurrence. Many cases happen within five years of completing the initial treatment. Cervical cancer: Of those with invasive cervical cancer, an estimated 35% will have a recurrence.
Fatigue is the most common acute side effect of radiation therapy. It is believed to be caused by the large amount of energy that is used by the body to heal itself in response to radiation therapy. Most people begin to feel fatigued about 2 weeks after radiation treatments begin.
Avoid inactivity and return to normal daily activities as soon as possible after diagnosis and treatment. Take part in regular physical activity. Start slowly and build up the amount of physical activity over time. Build up to 150-300 minutes of moderate (or 75-150 minutes of vigorous intensity) activity each week.
Most people getting radiation therapy feel fatigued. It does not mean that your cancer is getting worse. It does not mean that the treatment is not working. In fact, it is normal to feel very tired during this time.
It is extreme tiredness that can make you feel very drowsy and want to sleep a lot. You might also have: headaches. a high temperature.
In this study, among 59 patients who were receiving chemotherapy, only one patient had moderate level of fatigue, while rest all patients experienced severe level of fatigue 98.30%. So the magnitude of fatigue after chemotherapy is more than that of radiotherapy treatment. A study by Donovan et al.
Drink extra fluids to flush the radioactive material out of your body. No kissing or sexual contact (often for at least a week). Keep a distance away from others in your household. For example, you might be told to keep one arm's length, or maybe six feet, between yourself and others for a specific length of time.
Radiation therapy to the head and neck can cause side effects that make it difficult to take in adequate amounts of food and fluids. These side effects include loss of appetite, changes in taste or loss of taste, painful chewing and swallowing, mouth sores, dry mouth and nausea.
After chemo and radiation, your immune system can stay suppressed for several months.
What vitamins and supplements can I take? Not all vitamin and mineral supplements have antioxidants. For example calcium, vitamin D and vitamin B12 are not antioxidants. These vitamins and minerals are safe to take during your radiation treatment.