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About 5 weeks after surgery I met with a radiation oncologist. The tumor board had also discussed my case and had also recommended radiation. I went in to see the doctor with my mind made up. As he had a cancellation that day I immediately had a simulation session where they x-rayed me and marked me up for a "hockey stick" shaped radiation treatment area. I would get 3000 Rads over 15 days with weekends off.

Treatment started the following Tuesday. I had filled a prescription for Compazine (for nausea) and was advised by my radiation oncologist not to use this the first time (presumably to see how I reacted), but to take a pill about 1 hour before the 2nd treatment and another 2-3 hours later as needed. Well I vomited about 3 hours after the first treatment and again about an hour later, so I took some Compazine and went to bed. The next day was worse despite the compazine – I vomited an hour after treatment and then again 15 minutes later. This went on for an hour, then the frequency went to vomiting every 20 minutes or so for the next hour then vomiting about every hour. I phoned my radiation oncologist who called in a prescription for Zofran, another anti-nausea medication. My wife picked this up and I took a pill and went to bed.

The Zofran seemed to do the trick although I did not eat at all following treatments. I did not eat well during the day, more from fear of the unknown than from problems with nausea. As a result I lost about 7 pounds in a week. It should be noted that I am fairly skinny to begin with so the doctor advised me to eat more - I followed his advice. I joked with people that I was the only person under doctors’ orders to eat candy bars! I also drank Ensure and Carnation Instant Breakfast to increase my caloric intake. Toward the end of the treatments I began to experience diarrhea. Each day I took L-Glutamine, an amino acid that is used extensively in muscles and the intestine. There is some research that suggests it helps patients undergoing radiation therapy in that it helps speed recovery from intestinal damage. A 30-gram/day dose is recommended, but I was only able to take 15-20 grams. I used a powder form and stirred it into apple juice and yogurt -my intake was limited as I did not like the gritty feel!