[Becky]

I agree with Tricia on rad planning. You have to be naked from the waist up for hours with technicians or your rad onc coming in and out of the room to check things and make marks with Sharpie permanent ink pens and then tatoos! Worse off, the technician was my middle daughter's best friend's mother. You never see the other mom's from your kid's friend like she saw me. Of course she was professional but it was weird for me. Plus, I think I mentioned that my mom was diagnosed while I was having chemo. My mom didn't need chemo just a lumpectomy and rads and guess what? We had rads together. She started about 2 weeks before me (because you need the 3-4 week down time between chemo and rads). We did the consultation together and have the same rad onc (which has its good and bad points). So the mapping and nakedness - they did her in the morning and me in the afternoon and joked they did us together. Just thinking about that they had seen her and done her (naked - my mom is a very large woman and I am normal sized) was too much to think about. And that our doc saw us both - ughhh.

Mary Anne - I was also told to not gain or lose weight as it changes the chest (the girls gain and lose first and change shape. This is probably more important with lumpectomy that chest wall rads).

Tonya - you will do just fine. Are you continuing Gemzar or just Herceptin during this time. I am thinking about you and interested in this new therapy you are getting. Keep us posted on how they do it and how you are going through it. Hugs to you.