Session number three, my first "Doctor Day"

As usual, I arrived 15 minutes before my assigned time in the hopes that I would shoot in and out more quickly from the actual radiation treatment.  Today was a special day, my first "Doctor Day".  Each Thursday for the next 8 weeks, I will meet with the radiation oncologist after receiving my daily dose to ask any questions I may have, discuss any side effects and what to expect next and to hear what he has to say each step of the way.  This week I got a Green mark, which means I did everything they wanted me to do to make the treatment as effective as possible.  Number one on the list is coming in with a very full bladder, it presses the surrounding organs out of the way and the water in the bladder helps to protect it from radiation damage too.

I can't say enough good things about him and everyone on the team.  It truly is a team that put together the plan for my individualized therapy.  The radiation oncologist is the quarterback, if you will, but each and every team member plays a vital role in getting things right during both the planning phase and as treatments are dispensed.   There are also a physicist and a dosimetrist that perform precise calculations to determine the best angles for the radiation and the amounts.  They work with the 3D model of the body created during the CT and MRI scans and setup the computer programs that control the process.  The actual treatment is delivered by a radiation therapist and other staff that help during each visit.  So you see, it really is a team effort and I am blessed to have a Dream Team.  My urologist strongly recommended that I read a large book called Surviving Prostate Cancer by Dr. Patrick Walsh, so that I would be an informed patient and have the right questions for my personal situation.  I have it in Kindle format and it is on my phone as a pocket reference. That book has guidelines for choosing a radiation oncologist which include having treated more than 100 patients annually as well as working with the best technology.  My quarterback has done literally thousands of treatment regimens in the past 20 years and his practice uses IMRT and IGRT machines, considered the gold standard for what I need.  I couldn't be happier with the experience and technical prowess of my whole team.  

But wait, there's more!  Each and every person I have worked with over the past few months has been incredibly friendly and has the wonderful gift of making sure you feel like you are the most important person in the world as they give instructions and field questions they have undoubtedly heard numerous times before.   They do it with a grace and sense of humor that immediately allays any fears or misgivings I might have.  I thank God for each and every one of them and wish them and their loved ones well.

Finally, here is the picture I shared with the therapy staff today.  It's from Berry Springs Park this year and the beautiful hue in the water is the reflection of redbuds on the far shore accenting this Pied-Billed Grebe.