Stage 2a end of treatment.

Hi 4paws welcome to the forum and jeezo you have been through the mill, that's for sure.   I dont know enough about all that has happened for you  to support you as best as any of us can, but I know that this will  bump your post onto the thread. Lots of lovely folks there who I'm sure will pop on for a chat and also to thank you for sharing your story as you say yourself this can be of help for others so thank you for sharing this with us.

Sending some hugs your way for now. 

Hi 4paws and welcome to our group.

I’m glad to read that you have successfully completed your treatment and are recovering now-it can take a bit of time to fully recover from the effects of this treatment as it’s so intense, but you just need to look after yourself and gradually get yourself back to how you were before. 

I notice you are dreading the dilators but try not to worry about these too much in advance as it’s better to be relaxed when you try to use them. I was given mine to start using before my treatment ended, and they are a bit daunting when you see the set! They are important post treatment to help with keeping everything open inside to make future internal examinations easier, as pelvic radiotherapy can cause issues with this. I never managed to use the biggest size, and this was ok. I used plenty of lube and relaxed as much as I could and found them straightforward. You need to be gentle and use a circling motion from side to side to get the most benefit-don’t just stick it in and leave it there! I tried to use them every few days, but if you are in a sexual relationship you might not need to use them like this. The nhs issue dilators are rigid plastic, but you can buy silicone ones which you may feel more comfortable with.

You should have a check up around 6 weeks after treatment is finished with, where you will have a chat and an internal examination, and a follow up mri scan around 3 months after treatment. We all have a bit of anxiety around these checks and finding out if treatment has been successful, but the hope is to get a Ned result (no evidence of disease). 

Thank you for sharing your story with us-I hope you’ll stay in the group and let us know how you get on. There is always support here, and help for you going forward.

Sarah xx

Hi 4paws

Have just found your post whilst searching cisplatin on here. I’m currently 9 days into treatment, the same plan as yours. - 25 radio with 5 cisplatins to be followed by 2 brachytherapies

I was diagnosed with 2b adeno carcinoma of the the cervix at the beginning of August after a total hysterectomy to remove what was thought to be a large, benign ovarian cyst.

The cancer was an incidental find when tissue was sent for routine testing after my surgery. It was very high up in the cervix so hadn’t been picked up by my regular smear tests. It also hadn’t shown on the ct scan I’d had pre op so was a complete shock to everyone.

It had spread to my left ovary but thankfully I’ve had a clear pet scan which showed no further spread. Because of the aggressive nature of the cancrer, I was told this treatment was the best course of action to ‘mop up’ any microscopic cells that may not have shown on the pet scan and to give me the best chance of it not returning.

At the moment I’m feeling pretty awful so it’s nice to read that someone has made it through. I honestly don’t know how I’m going to cope for another 3 weeks. I’m so disappointed with myself, I thought I’d be tougher than this!

I feel slightly nauseous most of the time and have an odd, unpleasant taste in my mouth. I’m suffering with a funny head not particularly headaches just not thinking clearly and also feel a bit woozy/ unbalanced, It’s almost like I’m hungover. I feel toxic. Because of the hysterectomy I’m now having hot sweats which wake me in the night every few hours. The poor sleep is really beginning to drain me. It’s a round trip of about 5 hours to and from the hospital every day and I just feel exhausted and sick of it all already. I feel so pathetic when I think of the far worse treatments some are going through, it’s only 5 weeks for me fgs, but I’m finding it so hard.

Thank you for sharing your experience and giving me hope that I can do this. 

Best of luck with your recovery. X

Hi Colliemum and welcome to our group.

It must have been such a shock for you to have this diagnosis after you’d already been through a hysterectomy and then have to start treatment you weren’t expecting to go through. 

I had stage 2b adenocarcinoma too, but it was diagnosed at the outset from my biopsies. I went through 32 radiotherapy treatments (I wasn’t able to have brachytherapy so had more than my planned 25) and 4 Cisplatin ( my bloods weren’t good enough to have my planned 5th session). 

Lots of us have been through this treatment and come out the other side, so I hope that gives you hope you can get through. My treatment finished almost 6 years ago.

At times during the treatment I thought I couldn’t go on with it because I was just exhausted and from week 3 I started with cystitis and diarrhoea, but I did get medication prescribed to help with both of these. I had a round trip of 3 plus hours every day to the hospital, sometimes longer with traffic and that in itself was tiring.

However, I kept going, and my side effects were gone within a couple of weeks of the treatment finishing. But it will be even harder for you having been forced into menopause and having that to contend with too. 

I see you are a member of the ovarian cancer group, but you might want to join this group too so that you can make your own posts if you’d like to. Without being a member you can only reply to others.

I wish you well with the remainder of your treatment, and feel free to ask anything as you go along from those of us who have been through it.

Sarah xx

Hi colliemum

Thanks you for your reply.

I really feel for you as I only had a 2 to 3 hour round trip every day and obviously a full day for my chemo.

I was really lucky also as I had lifts so didn't have to drive myself. I really appreciated these offers, although I  still felt guilty for being taken to my appointments.

I also feel that I was lucky as I didn't have any caring responsibilities so didn't have to do anything if I didn't want to.

I looked forward to the weekend as I didn't have to leave the house.

On all my days I felt different so you can't plan anything. I just struggled  having to drink so much as I'm not a big drinker

I also wasn't recovering from a hysterectomy and sudden menopause like you are.

5 weeks seemed like for ever but it passed and I'm beginning to process it all yes it's traumatic but I wasn't going to give up. I just have to wait now to see if the cancer has gone.

You got this , you are tougher than you think.

Let people around you help. You have to relinquish some control and i found that extremely hard.i kind of learnt how to be selfish and put me first which is not what I'm used to doing. 

Best wishes