Today I had a meeting with the radiation oncologist. The meeting went well and I am scheduled to start radiation treatments next week, which means we are already going into week 4. The weeks are flying by! In addition to the meeting, I was fit for my mask. The purpose of the mask is to make sure they are directing the radiation in the correct spot. This was quite an experience. I would first like to begin by saying if you are claustrophobic this is not for you. The long and short of the fitting is lying on a CT scan table and having this gel-like material placed over your face to make the mold. When they place the material over your face you are pinned to the table so that you don’t move and mess up the mold. They then perform the CT scan to make the markings. The doctor then reads the scan and the official markings are made. While it is a 15 minute procedure, it feels like an eternity. I had no concept of time underneath the mask, so minutes turned into hours. At one point I made a signal to the tech asking how long for the doctor to read the scan and she said 5 minutes. Well the 5 minutes felt like an hour. While I am not claustrophobic, I didn’t enjoy having the gel like material molded to my face. Overall, it was an experience that is hard to explain. Now that my mask is made, the actual radiation is about 5 minutes, so I’m told.

Till next time…KMS