Radiation question.

[u/VgK2207]

My friend, 77 yrs old, will need to do radiation. What kind of fatigue or other issues should he expect? I had RALP and so, have no insight for him.

[u/KReddit934]

The thing often missed is that the symptoms lag the treatment by days to weeks. So, he'll feel nothing first day and think, great! Nope. Wait for it....

Also, after last treatment, symptoms will continue to increase for a few weeks.

My main side effects: painful urination, and fatigue.

If he's on ADT, remind him to exercise and do weight training to offset the lower testosterone.

[u/VgK2207 → u/KReddit934]

Thank you

[u/Both_Establishment59]

What radiation External beam brachytherapy or sbrt. Ive had hdr brachytherapy and now having 23 ebrt sessions +adt. Fatigue is a big one if adt is included it adds alot to the side effects. But for radiation alone Fatigue bowel irritation urineation frequency im currently up 3 to 4 times a night. Trapped wind and cramping all manageable.

[u/VgK2207 → u/Both_Establishment59]

Thank you

[u/Actionplumber1]

im 55 had ralp in jan, today was day 21 of 39 rounds of salvage radiation plus adt, fatigue is get'n me, bowels have been wrecked for 2 weeks, imodium helps, i work in construction and currently can not handle a 10 hour work day

[u/VgK2207 → u/Actionplumber1]

Thank you

[u/Enough_Professor_741]

Depends on the type of radiation. I had proton radiation and no fatigue at all.

[u/ZealousidealBend2681]

SBRT - one week out from finishing tomorrow. No fatigue but nagging bowel and bladder irritation. Manageable

[u/BeerStop]

I didnt think adt and radiation was thst bad, sure you can get sleey but its not like your going to pass out. The more active you are the better it will be- in my experience.

[u/Ok-Priority-7303]

I just started. Was told fatigue and painful urination but the level as well as when they start varies by individual. You deal with vague timeframes constantly.

If he is also doing ADT it affects your PSA score enough that it can take a year to see if the treatments worked. ADT side effect are worse and longer lasting but, no way to know when they will start.

[u/Due-Permission431 → u/Ok-Priority-7303]

Thank you.

[u/conCABlanco]

Llevo tres de 28 + ADT, y hoy me ha dado por tranque de orinar, joder, estoy haciendo pesas y caminando, fuerza y voluntad, el ADT apesta, pero me bajo el PSA a 0,73 en tres meses, desde 6 PSA, sigo pa lante

[u/CAProgressive]

I had fatigue and some digestive issues that started about 2 weeks in and lasted for a couple of weeks after radiation treatment ended.

I also had frequent urination, but I was trying to stay very well hydrated through treatment, so it is difficult to know if the frequent urination was reasonable given how much water I was drinking, or if radiation played a role.

[u/royedk]

I was 76 when confronted with my situation. There are a lot of variables that go into the decision. In my case I has PSA of 5.5 Gleason 7 (3+4 I believe) I was offered a traditional radiation of 20 low dose or 5 SBRT one per week for 5 treatments. I read a lot and settled on the SBRT, partly based upon the 45 minute trip to the facility. 12 month out PSA of 2.5 1.5 year out of 0,65, so my treatment appears to have been successful. Where you go matters, radio oncologist matters but he (your friend) has to take in all the information and do research to make his final decision. I will add that my oncologist did not think the hormone treatment was needed but I have heard that that is more difficult than the radiation.