There isn't a clear-cut standard length of time to hold tagrisso after radiation, as the main concern is delivering both therapies concurrently. Also, the longer the course of radiation, the more the perceived need to hold other treatment, while a single dose of radiation to a bone met might not require a pause in other therapy.
Is it normal that I still have the tumor pain after palliative radiation? It has been 3 days already after I finished radiation. Is the radiation supposed to help shrink the tumor and reduce pain? How long does it take to notice any symptomatic improvement?
I'm sorry that your pain is continuing, but that's not unexpected. Before I was thrust into the cancer world by my wife's lung cancer diagnosis, I envisioned the process of radiating a tumor as something similar to a ray gun in a science fiction movie. I thought the radiation would simply melt away the tumor on contact. The reality is that the radiation disrupts the DNA of the cancer cells and they lose the ability to multiply and eventually die off. This process can take a while - several weeks or a couple of months, which is why we typically delay a follow-up scan for at least several weeks, so that the effect of radiation can be determined. As Dr. West has said:
"The reason imaging is done several weeks later is that it takes a good few weeks after radiation is completed to really see the extent of shrinkage that can/will happen. Repeating scans too early can underestimate the response you’ll see to radiation. It’s most common to repeat scans a good 3-4 weeks after radiation was completed." - http://cancergrace.org/lung/topic/trouble-swallowing-during-radiation/#…
That being said, it will probably not take that long for your pain to lessen, although every person and every cancer is a bit different. It can depend on the size and location of the radiated tumor, so it's difficult to say, but over the next couple of weeks i would expect you to see some improvement in your symptoms.
Reply # - March 24, 2017, 05:33 PM
Hi kkh,
Hi kkh,
There isn't a clear-cut standard length of time to hold tagrisso after radiation, as the main concern is delivering both therapies concurrently. Also, the longer the course of radiation, the more the perceived need to hold other treatment, while a single dose of radiation to a bone met might not require a pause in other therapy.
JimC
Forum moderator
Reply # - March 25, 2017, 06:18 AM
JimC,
JimC,
Is it normal that I still have the tumor pain after palliative radiation? It has been 3 days already after I finished radiation. Is the radiation supposed to help shrink the tumor and reduce pain? How long does it take to notice any symptomatic improvement?
Thanks,
Kkh
Reply # - March 25, 2017, 09:02 AM
Hi kkh,
Hi kkh,
I'm sorry that your pain is continuing, but that's not unexpected. Before I was thrust into the cancer world by my wife's lung cancer diagnosis, I envisioned the process of radiating a tumor as something similar to a ray gun in a science fiction movie. I thought the radiation would simply melt away the tumor on contact. The reality is that the radiation disrupts the DNA of the cancer cells and they lose the ability to multiply and eventually die off. This process can take a while - several weeks or a couple of months, which is why we typically delay a follow-up scan for at least several weeks, so that the effect of radiation can be determined. As Dr. West has said:
"The reason imaging is done several weeks later is that it takes a good few weeks after radiation is completed to really see the extent of shrinkage that can/will happen. Repeating scans too early can underestimate the response you’ll see to radiation. It’s most common to repeat scans a good 3-4 weeks after radiation was completed." - http://cancergrace.org/lung/topic/trouble-swallowing-during-radiation/#…
That being said, it will probably not take that long for your pain to lessen, although every person and every cancer is a bit different. It can depend on the size and location of the radiated tumor, so it's difficult to say, but over the next couple of weeks i would expect you to see some improvement in your symptoms.
JimC
Forum moderator