Hi. I finished treatment 6 weeks ago (chemo, radio and bracky) and have just had my 6 week review. Everything looks fine and the treatment seems to have worked well. Im not due my mri scan until May. However, im worried about what happens after that. My consultant says I wont have anymore scans unless i present with symptoms and this terrifies me. What happens if i dont have any that im aware of? I believe i will be seen every 3 or 4 months for a check up but what does this entail? I feel totally lost and that i'll be forgotten about. Can anyone share their version of what happens in the year after treatment. Thanks
Hi Jen2905 and welcome to our group.
It’s good to see things things are looking good at your 6 week review, but it’s still a little bit to wait for your mri scan, which is typical. I had no issues at my 6 weekly review, and then waited till 3 months out from treatment for my mri scan.
I was seen every 3 months after treatment finished, and this involved a general chat, a feel around the lymphnodes in my groin area and then a visual check of my cervix with the speculum. I was also told that I would have no further scans unless I had any symptoms of concern. You won’t be forgotten about, as you will have that regular three monthly check.
I don't want to cause you any alarm, but I did have a recurrence but had no symptoms. However, because of the visual check done of my cervix, my consultant spotted a tiny area he was worried about and thought it could have been scar tissue or the cancer might have come back. I was sent then for an mri scan and further tests to be certain what was going on.
Scans are not normally done as a matter of course, as only things of a certain size will show up on a scan-not microscopic cells. However if you have any symptoms of bleeding for example, it would be usual to send you for a scan after an examination by your consultant.
I personally was reassured by my 3 monthly checkups and trusted that this would be sufficient to find anything quickly, which it did. I know it’s hard not to worry about recurrence after successful cancer treatment, because all of us do at some level, but there is no point in being exposed to the extra radiation caused by scans unless they are absolutely necessary.
I tried not to live my life worrying about a recurrence, and did my best just to get on with living my life and making sure I attended all my checkups. It’s hard when you first finish with treatment, but it does become easier to deal with as time goes on in my experience.
Sarah xx
Happy to try and reassure you Jen. Our treatment is so intense that I think we can feel a little lost and concerned afterwards when the support from the daily treatment finishes.
Remember you can always phone your CNS if you have any worries at all. You are not cast adrift with no support and I found my CNS very helpful at keeping in touch with me.
Definitely having no extra scans is normal so that’s something you don’t need to worry about! Just make sure to report anything that worries you, just for reassurance if nothing else. You shouldn’t have phone call checks, so if this is suggested to you, please say you’d like to be seen in person. “Patient led follow ups” (phone calls) are fairly standard nowadays, but I think it’s important initially to be seen on person, especially if you are anxious or worried,
My recurrence would never have been identified if I’d only had a phone call, since I had no symptoms at all of the typical bleeding etc so I’m very glad I was regularly seen.
Sarah xx
