I finished my radiation on 04/02/2012 at UCLA Radiology in Brentwood while observing and feeling few if any side effects. The following week after that last treatment I got a cold that didn't seem to want to go away. At times, the mucus build-up and slight breathlessness reminded me of my early symptoms pre-diagnosis. These got worse, but inconsistent; from mid-April to the the beginning of May each day would seem like a new ailment absent of the one from the previous day. Be it chest heaviness, shortness of breath, random fatigue, or what seemed like a "lump" in my throat, it was like a revolving door of symptoms that made me worried again.
When I visited my physician at the Sarcoma Oncology Center they were extremely confident that it was just side effects of radiation, and based on information I had received from UCLA, the side effects did match up and there have been testimonials of the symptoms lasting for a month or even more. This gave me some peace of mind.
On 05/07, Monday night before bed I noticed a scattering of painless little red bumps under my left armpit. The next day I went to my physician at the Oncology Center to verify my suspicion which was correct: shingles. He prescribed me a 10 day script of Acyclovir, effectively shortening the duration of infection and healing. Curiously though, I didn't feel any pain, one of the most ubiquitous symptoms of shingles. I guess I just got lucky. However, the shingles did make me consider the weak state of my immunes system, possibly another contribution from the radiation symptoms.
That Wednesday (05/09) I had a follow-up with the UCLA Radiology department with Dr. Selch. He noted that the symptoms did seem related to radiation, even though it was a low dose. The only one that perplexed him was the chest pain, so he had me do an x-ray that day and I haven't heard back from them. (I was told no news is good news, so I'm hoping that is the case.)
On that Friday (05/11) I had another PET scan to monitor progress. This following Tuesday (05/15) I got the results in from my physician at the Oncology Center. The mediastinal mass still shows no activity and continues to shrink, but there was small (less than 2 cm) activity in a lymph node below my left armpit and below my left pectoral. Both where the site of my shingles appeared. My doctor was concerned until he realized that the lymph nodes could have just been swollen from the shingles, a symptom that's known to happen frequently. He also said some of my chest pain could have been attributed by the shingles as well. Either way, he is ordering an ultrasound biopsy for next or following week, hoping that if it is shingles related it will just go back to normal. He also told me not to worry about relapse unless I observe any of the four major symptoms: soaking night sweats, fever, chills, and/or unexplained weight loss, of which I've had none.
I'm staying positive. I am extremely relieved that the mass in my chest is still dead and shrinking, as it confirms that the problems I've been having around them are probably just radiation side effects. But it just goes to show that this journey is not close to done, and I'm so grateful and thankful for the continued support.
P.S. I also celebrated my 25th birthday this Monday (05/14) and I can't think of a better gift than the fact that I even got to that day, and all of you, with your love and support helped push me there. So thank you all for the best birthday gift ever.
