Radiotherapy finished & feel a bit let down by my oncologist,

Hi

Sorry to hear about your experience with your consultant. Whilst I didn't have any of the side effects you are having, I found the Cancer Nurse Specialists ( CNS) very helpful with the sorts of questions you have. You should have been given their contact details so give them a call.

As an aside, if your area is similar to mine, you are unlikely to ever speak with the Consultant again - all my reviews were with the CNS team.

Hope this helps!

Regards

Stuart

Hi Tango2pints , glad you have completed your RT but sorry to hear you are having problems peeing.  I can’t remember having that feeling but maybe you have an infection.  It is important to drink plenty of water and I know that is difficult sometimes as you think peeing less frequently might help.  Scampidoodle  has made a very good point that the specialist nurses are probably the best ones to talk this over with, as your consultant sounds completely incapable of explaining anything.

Just one thought, did you mention the razor blades to your radiotherapy team?  Think there are all sorts of possibilities but sounds like you need professional advice and don’t just ignore it.  In terms of peeing at night, I am a 2-4 times a night chap.  My consultant has offered meds but I have always refused, and luckily I normally go straight back to sleep.

Keep us posted on your progress and ask any questions.  Best wishes, David

This really is not good care! Can I suggest that you write a formal letter of complaint? It won'tmake the situation you experienced yesterday any better but it will make the hospital aware of its shortcomings in patient care and address some of the issues you raise (hopefully). Better luck next time!

I had difficulty passing urine in week three of my 20 sessions of RT and was prescribed Tamsulosin by the radiology team. It worked wonders. Perhaps you could contact your GP and see if they will prescribe that.

I only needed to take it for about three months and then my GP phoned me to say "It's time to stop and see how you get on". She suggested reducing the dose gradually and not stopping immediately and that worked for me.

Hi there Tango,   Sorry to hear about your experience with your specialist and can only echo what others have said regarding what to do next.  I`m G9 T0N0M0 - see my bio.

I`m a similar stamp to you (6`2 96k) and also experienced the "razor blade" symptoms during and post RT.  In fact, that`s how the CNS described it when I asked if there was anything they could do to help this and other stuff going on.   I`m attaching a link to my RT experience during and after - but remember we are all different.

Essentially, I was prescribed suppositories along with Ibuprofen which helped enormously.   That said I endured the sides you describe for 10 days and then things started to return to some kind of normal.  I completed my 20 fractions on June 5th and now the plumbing at both ends is working normally, although still up for a good pee twice a night but sometime only once - which is heaven!

Speak to your team and CNS in particular - the Oncologists are not as accessible.  In fact my next review is not until early September and that`s gonna be by telephone, which I assume is a good sign.  I will be having a PSA test the week before -  this will be going further in the right direction.  All the best and I will look out for further updates and hoping this helps.

(5) Two weeks post Radiotherapy - the future looks bright! - Macmillan Online Community

I will indeed speak with my cns i do drink litres of water in fact during the drinking water process the 30 min run up my qty was a litre ill ring them now in fact see what they say thank you so much

Hi geoff thankyou very much im glad i was not the only one  its not painful as such just annoying ha ha ha i just tried ringing but need to ring cns in the morning thanks again ill let you know how i get on

Hi Tango2pints - how did the phone call with the CNS go?  I’ve been hiking in the Alps for the last three weeks, so I missed your original post.  Your oncologist sounds shocking. Next time you visit, try to get the receptionist on your side by being super cheerful and friendly on arrival (ask them how their day is going etc) and they should look out for you if there’s any delay in getting seen.     AW

Hi Alpine Wanderer   The cns was lovely and really apologetic went through loads of things with her she could not apologise enough, she contacted my surgery and i have been given tamusolin they are now 5 days into my system the razor wee has calmed down and the nightime toilet visits during the night have gone to hourly rathen every 30 minutes, very strange during the day i have no issues or urgency and drink at least one pint of water every hour from 5am (i always have) i have a few wee breaks but not many, oh my feet serm to swell but i do lots of walking no idea why they swell.

as soon as i go to bed ongo the toilet works and when i wake no foot swelling very strange i might call the cns but i dont want to be a pain and keep annoying with questions, i dont really do Dr Google as truthfully always puts me off.

i hope you are having the best time in the alos i am in manchester with my wife visiting my son before he heads over with The Taekwondo Team for the olympics

thanks for your lovely message and help to you and all

You should have been on Tamsulosin since you originally complained about your symptoms- no wonder the CNS was apologetic.   AW