Radiotherapy - bras

[Pixilicious1]

Can anyone recommend a bra to wear during radiotherapy on both sides - my breast and chest. I’m about to start in a couple of weeks and I’m wondering if normal non-wired bras will be uncomfortable after treatment.
thanks all

I found any bra uncomfortable, I’m sorry to report. I could just about tolerate a cami with a shelf bra (not large about the chest) but mostly wore a 100% cotton cami without support out and about and then a huge, loose and soft cotton tshirt at home. (It was summer)

Thanks @Lilgreygoose. I thought that might be the case. Thankfully I am pretty small boobed!

Good luck with the radio therapy. It wasn't as bad as the Staph A skin infection I experienced simultaneously during the whole period, but I'm also here to advise that no bra was often more comfortable. Tight cotton camisoles were okay, and didn't make the Staph A worse.

My favourite cream was Balneum Plus, which didn't exacerbate the infection and calmed the itching. The NHS loves petroleum jelly based creams, because they are cheap, and they kept on giving me different formulations, but eventually I brought them round. The dermatology team eventually accepted that my skin really needs to breathe.

Thanks for the recommendation @Papyrophile

Hi. I just bought pull up bras from Tesco and never ditched them. Six years later, I only wear soft pull on bras. Radiotherapy is ok. Use the medihoney. Also make yourself tumeric tea out of tumeric powder - it tastes disgusting ( bung in lemon and honey) but it reduces the inflammation brilliantly. Recommend Aveeno cream. I worked during the first week but then the fatigue got me and unfortunately stayed for quite a time.
The actual radio takes about 90 seconds. It's just a whir and that's it. What takes the time is them positioning you mm by mm cirrectly on the bed. They tatoo two little dots on you. Room is quite chilly because of the machine.

I drove myself there and back and was always unaccompanied but I live 20 mins drive from the hospital. If you live a while away then you may need someone to drive you especially when the fatigue kicks in.

It was probably the easiest part of the whole cancer thing. Just remember that you 'cook' for a long time afterwards so don't do too much!

I wish you well @Pixilicious1 . Are you having all the radiotherapy in one week, or over a longer period?

For your reassurance, my RT was November 2021, so Covid affected. The oncologists and RT were superb, without exception, and immensely kind at every stage, and I have now recovered to the point at which I don't even think about having had breast cancer. Not quite 21 again, but definitely as fit and well as a person can be at 68. Please feel free to direct message if you want to ask questions or for any other reason.

And, IDK if your hospital does this, but ours gives oncology patients free parking. It sounds trivial, but a week of outpatient treatment racks up parking charges. It is worth asking reception if they have a voucher/token/code.

If you have someone who can help you (take you shopping or go shopping for you, or help you with internet delivery), wait and see how you feel and what is most comfortable once treatment has started, then order or buy something. It is hard to predict what you will need / what will work best.

Good luck for your treatment.

I had front zip bras after surgery and radiotherapy. The M&S one was OK, sainsbury's one was better.

@Pippatpip that's good advice too. The treatment is so brief, you forget that the burn takes time, and there's no visible wound. And yes, the RT suite is arctic; the machines are happier kept cool.

Thanks everyone, it really is great to hear your experiences as this another ‘unknown’ on this long slog of a road x

Trust the system @Pixilicious1 , it's already proved it works! Stay positive. x

I had some front fastening ones that were bamboo. Expensive but very comfortable and I got plenty of wear out of them.
I now use crop tops from M&S flexifit range are good. They provide plenty of support but are totally seamless and don’t rub the lymph node incision ( they come up quite high under the arm). I can’t wear anything with a stiff seam they just dig in too much.
Anything with too much texture just rubbed the sensitive skin after radio.
To be honest I just wore light fitting tops initially until the skin settled down.
Moo goo was the best post treatment moisturiser. I would slip into the loo on my way out and lather a layer on before going home. Applying it regularly throughout the day helped but I would shower and wash it off just before leaving for the next dose.

Thanks all.
@Papyrophile i’m being treated bilaterally, having 15 sessions on the left where I’ve had a mastectomy and 20 on the right as I only had a lumpectomy on that side. Across 4 weeks total.

Good luck @Pixilicious1 Hopefully you’ll sail through. Just keep moisturising! I don’t think it matters too much what you use, as long as it’s gentle and you use it. I used Eucerin, Aveeno and La Roche Posay over the course of the 4 weeks.

Hope everything goes swimmingly @Pixilicious1 . I'm sure we'll all be cheering you through it.

I was advised by the oncologist to wear a cotton bra - I wore one of mine that was about 40% cotton, it wasn't underwired and did up at the front (I'd bought it for after my surgery) and then I wore cotton rich bra tops while that one was washing and drying!

Honestly radio was a walk in the park compared to everything else. Hardest part for me was when it finished as I then had to figure out the rest of my life! I just wore some soft bras but went back to underwires after with no issues. Best of luck.

Thanks everyone for your advice, support and good wishes x

I am not small of boob, so really had to wear something during the day to keep comfortable. Primark stretchy bralettes, just to minimise the movement.

I had RT over 2 weeks, on the same side. Larger area, then a concentrated dose for the cancer bed. I was fine during and just after, but eventually my skin got pretty bad. Every movement seemed to catch the skin, or it would stick, to clothes, dressing, my arm skin etc. It was constantly weeping, and struggling to heal up. For me, the turning point was how I slept. I wedged myself sideways into a nest of cushions, with my arm propped up slightly, so the burn was totally exposed, and I had a fan blowing gently over it. All night. 2-3 days later it was nearly all healed, and just a little tender. Hopefully won't be that bad for you (consultant thought I'd had it harder due to being on chemo as well) but just in case, letting it breath really helps. Best of luck.

Hi @Pixilicious1 just wondering how you are getting on with your radio, and bras etc? I'm starting three weeks of radiotherapy for breast cancer next Monday.