Side Effects of Radiation Therapy - Breast Cancer
The following are the most common side effects, both acute and chronic, resulting from radiation. Unforeseen side effects may occur because of the unique and varied tolerance of individual persons. Late effects of treatment may not always be predictable and may be influenced by concurrent and/or subsequent treatment for this and other diseases. These common side effects include, but may not be limited to the following.
The radiation therapy of breast cancer usually entails 5 to 7 weeks of daily treatments, Monday through Friday. The treated area may be limited to the breast (chest wall), or may also include the regional lymph nodes in some patients. Certain side effects are associated with these treatments.
Fatigue is noted by many, but not all patients, and usually starts 2 to 3 weeks into the treatment series. The fatigue typically increases through the rest of the treatment series and takes about 4 to 6 weeks to go away once treatments have been completed. This is not normally debilitating and, in itself, should not affect your daily activities or ability to drive. However, you may wish to go to bed earlier or take an afternoon nap during this period. Fatigue and weakness are worse in patients who lose weight. Accordingly, we strongly encourage you to supplement your diet with high calorie foods or commercially available nutritional supplements (for example Ensure Plus, Sustacal, Boost), if necessary to maintain your weight.
Your blood counts may require monitoring periodically during treatment, especially if you also receive chemotherapy.
The skin of the treated area may become reddened, like a sunburn. This is a cumulative side effect and usually starts about three weeks into the treatment series. Occasionally, the skin reaction will be more severe including blistering and/or peeling. If this is occurring or appears imminent, a treatment rest may be given. Your physician and staff will suggest remedies for local skin care as reactions occur. The skin color that occurs as part of the radiation reaction will slowly fade after the treatment is complete, but may take 6 to 12 months to fade completely.
Breast discomfort or pain is also fairly common with radiation therapy. This is most often a mild problem which may respond to over-the-counter pain medicines. It resolves several weeks to several months after radiation, although may persist for a longer period in a few patients.
Occasionally, swelling of the breast or less commonly of the arm may occur during or after the treatment. This swelling may last from several weeks to several months and will be permanent in a small minority of patients. If your treatment includes the lymph nodes, permanent swelling of the arm is somewhat more common.
Many of the symptoms and reactions that occur as a part of your radiation treatment may be lessened with appropriate measures, and these will be recommended to you by your physician and staff as your treatments progress.
When the breast is treated with radiation, a small area of lung under the breast is also treated. As a result, the small area of treated lung may be scarred. This is a permanent change, but affects such a small percentage of your lung volume that your breathing function should not be affected. Very rarely, more severe lung injuries or other late complications may occur after radiation therapy including rib fractures under the breast or, if the lymph nodes are treated, injury to the nerve supply of the arm on the treated side.
You may also notice permanent subtle changes in the treated area including the skin. Inexpensive moisturizing lotion or aloe vera gel is recommended for local dryness or itchiness. The treated skin may be more sensitive to sun exposure. Accordingly, we advise wearing clothing or sunscreen over the treated area while spending time outdoors. This is a lifelong recommendation.
This statement is not a warranty, but it is simply meant to give information regarding typical radiotherapy side effects and their management. Catastrophic or even fatal radiation complications may occur in rare cases. Great care will be taken to minimize the side effects and reduce the risk of radiation damage to normal tissues.
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