What radiotherapy is like

Today, my appointment time was changed.  I agreed to go in the afternoon to suite 7.  I am usually in suite 5.  I had the same radiotherapists, but in a different room.

The scanner looked exactly the same, as in suite 5. 

It is a big circular shape that stands behind a long thin table.  The table is separate from it, and the big circle rises up from the floor.  The circle is solid.  It looks like something out of Doctor Who.  The radiotherapists are the evil creatures who sneak out of the room to zap me while I am not looking. 

The scanner is large and has circular glass panels.  It is nearly ceiling high.  It is a big circle standing one the floor.

There is also a smaller scanner.  At the beginning of radio therapy, it is a circle about 2 feet wide that lies above my head.  I am lying on the table, and my head is screwed to a polyurathane neck mould.  It is an artificial yellow mould that I put my head into at the start of the process.  The radiotherapists than add my "shield" (the mask) and screw it around the mould.  The mould keeps my eyes closed, but I can peak and see the circular scanner above me. 

The radiotherapists then begin measuring everything. 
"93.2"
"Good, move 1.3"
I get shunted.
"94.5"
"Good"

They measure a few different places, and then leave the room.

In suite 5 there is a CD player, so I play by ipod.  We were in the middle of Jazz (Queen), Fat Bottom Girls, I think.  However, in suite 7 there is no CD player.  This means that I listen to the scanner.

What I can see through my eye lids is blue flashing light.  The small scanner has moved - it is to my left hand side.  The radiotherapists have left the room.  The scanner sounds like a spirograph.  Imagine someone is drawing a circular pattern, with a blue lazer pen, using the plastic circle and outer shape.  The sound of someone doing this really fast.  This is the sound of the scanner.  The pattern is what I imagine is being projected into my brain.  The aim is to stop the tumour from growing. 

The scanner stops, and then it starts again, from another angle.  I think a different sized circle is being used, and the pen goes round really fast, and all the teeth grind to make a high pitched sound.

Three different scans occur like this.  Then the radiotherapists return, and I am rotated 90 degrees or so, and re-measured for other scans.  More scans continue.  If there really was a pen, there are at least two spaces on my scalp that would be painted blue. 

These are the parts of my skull that are really sore.  It does feel like a burn, and I think I am at the early stages of hair loss - just the odd few hairs are dropping out here and there.

And then a radiotherapist appears and says "all done" and unclips my mask. 

I always say thank you, which they find funny.  I can't imagine what their job is like, scanning people like me all day.  It must be hard going.

We all wish each other a good weekend.