Dialator use after brachytherapy

Dear Ladies 

hope you don’t mind me asking what’s the difference between brachytherapy and chemotherapy?

i also have grade 3 cancer found in a uterine polyp. No stage yet as hysterectomy recent. The surgeon said treatment would be chemotherapy.

please excuse ignorance but you did warn against googling. 

Thanks xxx

Hi there, brachytherapy is radiation treatment delivered internally. It’s localised to the pelvis area. It’s fairly painless from what others have said on here and can be given in short or long sessions. Chemotherapy is a systemic drug treatment that can be delivered via infusion through a cannula or orally via tablets. You can find out more by using the search facility on the site (at the top of the page). Chemo is usually reserved for higher stages and higher grades of cancer. Some ladies might have bot treatments.  In my case I had an aggressive type of serous cancer which had jumped into a lymph node so I had 6 sessions of chemo and 25 sessions of external pelvic radiotherapy. Your medical team will decide what, if any, further treatment is needed once they have the histology results from your hysterectomy. 

Hope that helps a little x 

Hi christmas19 brachytherapy is a type of radiotherapy delivered internally either short dose over a week or one long dose. It's done to treat the vaginal cuff area where cancer can recurr. Chemo is drugs usually given via IV of a course of 3-6 months once every 3 weeks it's called systemic treatment which means it travels through the blood stream to the whole body targeting any stray cancer cells.

Sorry I see you got almost identical answer from fairycake at the same time as me!

Thank you Fairycake and Paper Moon

forewarned is forearmed  ;0)

I had stage 1a grade 3 cancer and a total hysterectomy and lymph node removal. Got the all Clear but MDT recommended radiotherapy post op in form of brachytherapy  (4 sessions) in vaginal vault  because grade 3 cancer is more aggressive and more likely to recur.

The oncologist said chemotherapy would not be needed.  Radiation in this form is where a radioactive source is placed in the vagina near the hysterectomy scar for a short period of time (someone correct me if I am wrong), while chemotherapy is where drugs are injected into the system

I start my brachytherapy treatment in January. 

Just to add my grade 3 cancer was confined to a uterine polyp. 

Hi Galanthophile I have used a dialator (size 4) for 6 months and i sometimes experience a clear or white discharge . It sometimes looks discoloured (greenish) when I use the sylk lubricant. I do have a stinging kind of pain at the beginning of the exercise but it does  ease off.  I have read that vagina trauma can cause abdominal pain and I do wonder if by dialating we are hurting ourselves.  There was another lady on here who mentioned she experienced excruciating pain after radiotherapy after she has resumed relations with her husband.  I have this too. I have found if I dialate every other day this seams better.  I have had a spot of blood on the top of the dialator once but not now. At my last check up I was told that the vagina can become smaller and loses elasticity. Take care Dawn xx

Thanks for your reply which is reassuring. I just needed to know that others had experienced the same. You know how worrying it all is..!

xx

Hi

Brachytherapy is internal radiotherapy,(they'll insert it in your vagina), chemotherapy is a drug, can be tablet form or in my case it was a IV drip.

X Shelley