What Kind of Radiation Did You Get for Your Gynecological Cancer?

I was diagnosed with adenocarcinoma of the cervix in 2016. After a bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy, I had external beam radiation and brachytherapy completed in 2017. In 2021, I had a metastasis to the left supraclavicular lymph node. I started on Libtayo in October of 2021 and it failed after 3 cycles. I then started chemotherapy with carboplatin and Taxol in March of 2012 and finished in May with no disease progression. In August a metastasis to my bladder was found. I am now planning to start chemotherapy with tisotumab vedotin, an antibody conjugate. This is a last resort treatment and has as many and more side effects than the previous chemotherapy and in clinical trial had a 24% overall response rate.

Good Morning- Thank you for this ! I met virtually with the Radiation team on Thursday and this is exactly the treatmnet they have planned out for me , with the addition of one day of Chemotherapy each week. I should hear Monday for the start date. They were very upfront and detailed with the process but hearing it from peers is so much appreciated. TY

The beginning of my pelvic radiation therapy journey was the CT simulation. The staff first took me to a dressing room where I changed into a gown that tied in the back. She explained to me that each time I came for radiation therapy I would be changing in a similar room in a designated suite of rooms. The changing room has a lock and the key can be worn around the wrist.

I was then accompanied to the CT simulation room. First, they made a sort of "cradle" for my legs. This was a casting that was made while I laid on my back. The purpose is that every time I came to radiation therapy my cast would be on the table and I could then lie in the exact same position. That cast was marked with my name and eventually placed in the room to make it available every day I arrived for radiation therapy.

I then had a CT with and without contrast. I don't recall having CT with contrast before. An IV was started. The CT without contrast was first and then and the contrast was administered for the second CT. I felt a warm and odd flushing that first centered in my pelvis and then went up to my neck. I became anxious with that feeling which I'm very familiar with and started to feel a little panicky. Then I reminded myself - oh, yes. This is the contrast. It went away quickly. The radiation oncologist and the physicist who has the training to work with radiation application sat behind a window in the same room. The purpose as I understood it of the CT was to examine my organs in the pelvic area to decide on exactly where the radiation would be targeted. It was also done so that everyone involved in my radiation therapy would know the location of my organs inside my pelvic area. After those measurements were taken with the CT, a staff member put little tiny tattoos in three places on me. One is on my belly just below my belly button and the other two are a few inches on my sides just below the hips. These felt like tiny pin pricks when they were done. The purpose of the tattoos would be for the radiation therapists to get the precise and exact location for each and every external radiation treatment. In order to make those little tattoos more visible to the eye, the first time I came to radiation therapy the tech used a black sharpie to draw little marks that made the areas on both of my sides more visible to them. They did this when the sharpie marks disappeared over time too as I had 25 external radiation treatments.

My next post will describe what happened when I started the actual external radiation therapy. started.