New to group and needing advice

Hi

Sorry that you and your sister are going through this 

I’m not an expert but both my mum and husband have had radiotherapy so I can share what happened with them ,although I’m sure once your sister goes to the hospital she will be given lots of information about the treatment and side effects.

Fortunately in my experience the side effects are far less than those associated with chemotherapy. The side effects tend to grow as the treatment goes on rather than starting immediately and can continue to develop for a while after the radiotherapy has ended  therefore initially you probably won’t notice much change so don’t worry too much about being prepared. My husband had seven weeks of daily radiotherapy and he was always able to get up and down the stairs unaided. He slept a bit more than usual but nothing major. He did become  quite fatigued towards the end of the treatment but  was always fully mobile  
With regards to issues with eating I think that depends on where the radiation will be aimed at. My mum had breast cancer and my husband prostate cancer so the radiation didn’t affect their ability to eat, however if the radiation is aimed at the throat area there can be issues with eating (we have a friend who had just had this) so if this is the case the hospital will be prepared for it and will fit something called a PEG to feed through  If this is not the case for you sister I would say just have foods that she really enjoys but are quite easy to eat   -things like pasta bake, curries,chilli, bolognese- full of goodness but not too much chewing needed if she’s tired 

The skin at the site can sometimes become sore , like sunburn and we were told E45 wa the best thing for it so maybe stick up on that -and when the treatment starts use it starting away as hopefully that will prevent the burn getting bad. 
As with anyone diagnosed with cancer moods can change but I don’t think that radiotherapy particularly  affects this in my experience. 
As I said I’m not an expert so am only telling you what I have experienced through caring for my family. 
I hope this helps a little but Im sure Macmillan can provide you with more info specific to your sisters type of cancer.
Wishing you and your sister all the best with her treatment

Jillybean