Thrush coursed by radiotherapy

Hi Dizzy1968,

I think we’ve all suffered the dreaded itch during & sometimes after treatment & most, including me, have found by far the best way to deal with it is to take antihistamines, personally I took Piriton & I know I sound a bit like a broken record but moisturise at every opportunity. If it’s an aqueous type cream your team have given you use that to wash with & I only used water wipes to clean myself after going to the loo. I know it sounds a bit silly but make sure your toilet roll isn’t scented either, so many are these days! Also try & stay really well hydrated as that will help the condition of your skin. Do you have a weekly check-in with your oncologist, mine was every Monday after treatment, I’d get my bloods checked & my oncologist or one of his team would check my skin & see how I was feeling etc., if so mention it then also but most find a decent antihistamine helps. 

Nicola

Hi Dizzy1968 the itching is miserable isn’t it. I had a lot of anal itching during treatment and beyond. I found lukewarm salt baths helped. Also people in this group have recommended a piriton hay fever tablet at night. These are available over the counter but please check with your treating team that you are ok to take them.  I would also suggest that you ask to see a nurse at the hospital as you really need a thrush diagnosis before starting to treat for thrush. There are oral treatments for thrush but a nurse/ doctor should prescribe these as you don’t want them reacting with anything and they can be heavy on the liver. Bev. 

I was told to use an aqueous cream on tissue paper after going to the toilet which I’m doing, it might help with moisturising  my skin, but not helping with that thrush feeling, of being hot, swollen and itchy, I see my oncologist and radiologist every week, and keep asking them about something for itching I’m seeing the radiologist again today, she gave me a prescription for a barrier cream yesterday, I can’t see how that will stop the itching as this is in the vagina not dry skin itching!! X

Hi Dizzy,

Radiotherapy does cause a lot of irritation, itching and soreness to the skin down there, but don't assume it must be thrush. Follow the advice from others on this thread for things that might help soothe you and def check with medical staff before you go using Canesten, or anything else for that matter. You are almost finished (yay!) and things will be getting uncomfortable for sure, but it's most likely just the radiotherapy damage which is making you itch, not any infections like thrush. Good luck.

Unfortunately Dizzy1968 I think you’ll find the issues you’re having are very common & are due to radiation burn, I would give the antihistamine a try even if it just takes the edge off it’ll be a little relief, it definitely helped me & also others have noted that it’s helped them too. 

Nicola 

Thanks everyone for your comments, I did speak to my oncologist today and asked  would I be able to try canesten cream, just to see if I get relief from it, I would try it over the weekend but will make sure I wash it off before my radiotherapy, which he agreed, I brought the new canesten  soothing cream  ( canescool ) it has soothed it but will let you all know how I got on over the weekend. Once again thank you all for your advice x x

Good luck with the cream. Just to add, like others I found antihistamine helped the itching, and as others have said , lots of moisturising . I also found the itching would be at its worst just before the surface layers of skin broke down and came away. Another vote for living in the bath with salt/Epsom salts in. Keep up with the painkillers too . Good luck

Pita, thank you,  yeah doing Epsom salt baths everyday, wiping with E45 after toilet, pain killers and now the canesten cooling cream x

Hi Dizzy1968, I’ve only just seen this post now, but I had the exact same thing about roughly the same time! I bought the canesten normal cream and a pessary used them both but still had the same itchy hot feeling so I spoke to my nurse and she gave me the once over, legs in stirrups and a speculum up my floo , was ok actually, I expected it to hurt but it didn’t ?! Anyway turns out I hadn’t got thrush so perhaps that’s how the radiation affects us?How are you doing now? And just out of curiosity how is the canesten cooling cream? I hadn’t heard of that before. X

Hi Alaskita 

No it’s not thrush, it is the effects from the radiotherapy, it’s definitely not as bad as it was, having salt baths, constantly moisturising wiping with E45 and using the canescool cream especially at night it’s really good it’s new out, I luckily noticed it when getting the normal canesten cream that I haven’t bothered using to be honest, see the radiologist nurse today and she said it would get worse ( Great )

I have tried posting pics up of the cream and something else I use but won’t let me 

Thanks for replying x x