No Bowel Prep - Radiation Simulation

Posted by service1010 @service1010, 2 days ago

I find it surprising that my RO is not asking me to do any kind of bowel preparation before my radiation simulation. I will be getting 5 sessions of SBRT
Is this 'normal'?

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service1010 | @service1010 | 1 day ago

In reply to @georgemc "I am 90+ years old and just finished 42 sessions of Proton therapy, with NO guidance..." + (show)

@georgemc 90+ You are amazing!

xahnegrey40 | @xahnegrey40 | 1 day ago

In reply to @service1010 "@xahnegrey40 Empty bowels naturally or with an enema?" + (show)

@service1010 well whatever works...I cannot remember my prep instructions, frankly..that time is mostly a blur I am trying to forget...why not call and ask just to make sure..I do know that several guys were not able to get their radiation becaus they had not empptied bowels ...so it is a big deal..also, drinking the 35 oz water before radiation each morning is a must. once you get the routine down tho, its not a big deal

heavyphil | @heavyphil | 1 day ago

In reply to @melvinw "I was told to follow the same prep instructions for my simulation that I would follow..." + (show)

@melvinw Yes, that’s the explanation my RO at Sloan gave, but he insisted on an enema beforehand.
The idea is to have the rectum shrunken down to its narrowest diameter so the simulation software can place the radiation as close to the rectum as possible (safely!) in order to kill wayward PCa cells.
Especially important in SRT.
Phil

daveys | @daveys | 1 day ago

In reply to @xahnegrey40 "it is just the simulation- they want to make sure markers are in right place..when you..." + (show)

@xahnegrey40 My instructions for the sim for photon therapy was empty bladder 45 minutes before and then drink 16.9 oz water. Same for treatments.

bob1955 | @bob1955 | 1 day ago

My radiology team instructed me to not do anything special (such as a mini-enema) as they wanted a natural bowel environment. For me, it was 16 oz of water 30 minutes prior.

dhasper | @dhasper | 1 day ago

Getting radiation now at Mayo, and my instructions were the same as for simulation. 16-20 ounces of water 1 hour before treatment. They want you to try to be regular but the deal is they want your rectum to be empty, but are not worried about the entire bowel. So it would be someone who has volume in their rectum, so it is distended. I would imagine if you really felt like you had to go and held it or were constipated, it could be a problem, but I have not had a problem on days I did go and I did not have to. I have had 17 treatments. Two times, they said I was close to not having enough urine and one time they had me get up and pee about halfway to reduce the amount of urine. The focus on bowel prep has been much, much less than what I expected.

brianjarvis | @brianjarvis | 4 hours ago

(I had 28 sessions of proton radiation.)

As for the bowel prep —> They told me that the rectum being “empty” didn’t mean it had to be clean; no need for an enema. What my radiation oncologist told me was what they really mean is nothing in the lower intestine, material or gas, that might move during the radiation treatment and cause the prostate to move. So, no gassy foods that might cause issues; so at the same time as I was emptying my bladder (45 minutes prior to treatment), I would also be sure to empty bowels. Worked every time.

The full bladder/empty bowel routine was easy to manage. In the weeks leading up to my radiation treatments; the amount of water to consume varies from person to person; mine was just 18oz 30 minutes prior to treatment.

I practiced every day. By the time of my first treatment, I had the routine down to a ritual. It worked like clockwork every time and never caused an issue.