‘Will the radiotherapy treatment make me radioactive?’
This treatment does not make you radioactive, you can go about your normal daily activities. It is safe for you be in contact with children and pregnant women during and after treatment.
‘Can I choose my appointment times?’
While we try our best to accommodate your preference for appointment times, there are many factors that mean we cannot always guarantee this but you can ask staff to try.
‘How long will the treatment take?’
The vast majority of treatment appointments are achieved within a 15 minute time slot, some may take longer depending on your treatment regime. After some appointments you may be asked to wait for a ‘review’, on these days you will be in the department a little while longer.
‘Will the treatment make me lose my hair?’
Hair loss from radiotherapy only occurs in the area being treated. This loss is gradual over the course of the treatment and hair often regrows in the weeks and months that follow after you finish treatment. Some hair loss may be permanent, if you have concerns regarding this then you should discuss with your oncology consultant.
‘Will the treatment hurt?’
There is nothing to see or feel when receiving radiotherapy treatment. You may be aware of the machine moving quite closely to you, however it will not touch you.
‘Can you tell me if the treatment is working?’
The scans we take are detailed enough to ensure that you are positioned correctly and that we are targeting the right area, however they do not provide enough detail to see what effect the treatment is having. Once you have completed the full course of treatment, you will have a follow-up appointment with your consultant to discuss the outcomes of the treatment.
‘When will I get side effects’
Every person responds differently to radiotherapy so we can’t say for certain but usually we expect side effects to show up towards the end of your second week. The side effects have an accumulative effect so these might get worse before they start to get better around 10 days after treatment has finished.
‘What happens if I’m unable to attend my treatment?’
Please call us if you think you will be unable to attend your appointment. Ideally, we aim to avoid any unplanned gaps in treatment once you have started. If for any reason you do miss an appointment, you may be asked to compensate for this by having two treatments in one day, or we may simply add a treatment onto the end of your schedule, this will be different depending on your treatment regime.
‘Can I eat and drink as normal while having treatment?’
Unless instructed otherwise, you can eat and drink as you normally would whilst on treatment. We encourage all of our patients to drink water regularly to stay hydrated throughout your course of treatment. We advise against alcohol consumption as this can dehydrate your body and make some of the side effects of treatment worse. Some patients will be asked to fast prior to their treatment each day, whilst others may be asked to require a full bladder for treatment, this will depend on your treatment regime.
‘Can I carry on smoking during treatment?’
Smoking is generally bad for your health so we always advise to seek support in stopping smoking. Smoking can make certain side effects of treatment worse so we actively try and encourage our patients to stop smoking.
'Do I need to leave my hearing aids/phone/jewellery outside the room?'
You can bring all your belongings in to the treatment room with you. It is only in the area that we are treating that we ask you to remove any item of clothing or jewellery. E.g. if we are treating your neck region we will ask you to remove your earrings, necklace and top. If we are treating your pelvis we will ask you to lower your trousers and lift your top up slightly but you can keep jewellery in.
Rydym yn croesawu gohebiaeth a galwadau ffôn yn y Gymraeg neu'r Saesneg. Atebir gohebiaeth Gymraeg yn y Gymraeg, ac ni fydd hyn yn arwain at oedi. Mae’r dudalen hon ar gael yn Gymraeg drwy bwyso’r botwm ar y dde ar frig y dudalen.
We welcome correspondence and telephone calls in Welsh or English. Welsh language correspondence will be replied to in Welsh, and this will not lead to a delay. This page is available in Welsh by clicking ‘Cymraeg’ at the top right of this page.