TAIZO: WHEN IT COMES TO THE
DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT OF
CANCER, WE'VE COME A LONG WAY.
RAIDATION TREATMENT HAS
UNDERGONE NEW ADVANCES THANKS TO
NEW TECHNOLOGY.
JOINING US TO HELP US UNDERSTAND
THE WHOLE PROCESS, ESPECIALLY
THE PLANNING PROCESS FOR
RADIATION TREATMENT IS GINA
WALKER FROM THE CANCER CENTER OF
HAWAII.
ALOHA.
I LOVE THAT YOU'RE COMING IN.
YOU'RE A CERTIFIED MEDICAL
DOSIMETRIST.
WHAT IS A DOSIMETRIST?
WHAT DO YOU DO?
DOSIMETRIST IS A VERY
SPECIALIZED PART.
RADIATION ONCOLOGY TEAM.
WE GIG OUT FIGURE OUT HOW TO GIVE THE
DOSE TO THE TUMOR.
WITHOUT HARMING ANY CRITICAL
STRUCTURES THAT MAY BE AROUND
THAT TUMOR.
FOR EXAMPLE, BREAST CANCER YOU
HAVE THE LUNG OR HEART THAT'S
NEAR.
TAIZO: YOU WANT TO MAKE SURE
YOU GET THAT WITH RADIATION.
TALK ABOUT THAT PROCESS.
ONCE SOMEONE HAS CONSULTED WITH
AN ONCOLOGIST, WHAT WOULD BE THE
NEXT STEP?
THIS IS A CT SIMULATION.
THE THERAPIST WILL PUT MARKS ON
YOU AND ASK FOR YOU TO KEEP
THOSE MARKS UNTIL THE FIRST
TREATMENT.
THAT WAY THEY CAN USE THAT TO
LOCALIZE ONCE YOR START YOUR FIRST
TREATMENT.
TAIZO: IF I HAVE SOMETHING
HERE, THEY WOULD PUT A MARK
THERE SO THEY KNOW THAT'S WHERE
IT IS.
THE FIRST MARK IS THE
STARTING POINT.
MAY NOT BE EXACTLY WHERE YOUR
TREATMENT AREA IS BUT WE MAKE
SURE IT'S LEVEL.
TAIZO: HOW LONG AFTER THE
SIMULATION WILL IT BE BEFORE THE
FIRST TREATMENT?
SO IT CAN BE SOMEWHERE
BETWEEN ONE TO TWO WEEKS,
DEPENDING ON COMPLEXITY OF YOUR
PLAN.
TAIZO: YOU'RE TARP TALKING THERE'S
SO MUCH THOUGHT.
THERE'S A TEAM.
CORRECT.
TAIZO: AWESOME.
SO I WANT TO KNOW, WHAT IS TO BE
EXPECTED ON IS THAT FIRST DAY OF
TREATMENT?
WHEN YOU FIRST COME DOWN?
THE FIRST DAY OF RADIATION IS
GOING TO BE THE LONGEST DAY.
IT WILL BE ABOUT 40 MINUTES.
THE THERAPISTL GO THROUGH THERAPIST WILL GO THROUGH
THE PROCESS AND THEY'LL LINE YOU
UP THE WAY YOU WERE THE DAY OF
THE SIMULATION.
THEY WILL ALSO TAKE IMAGES TO
GET YOU LINED UP AND LEVEL AND
FIND OUT EXACTLY WHETHER THAT
TREATMENT AREA IS.
TAIZO: AND THEN DAILY,
TREATMENT TIME'S NOT GOING TO BE
THAT LONG?
CORRECT.
THE DAILY TREATMENT WILL BE
SOMEWHERE BETWEEN 10 AND 240 2 -- 20
MINUTES.
TAIZO: THAT FIRST DAY IS THE
LONGEST.
AND WITH ALL THE PEOPLE THAT DO
COME IN?
HOW IS THAT FIRST DAY?
EMOTIONALLY, PHYSICALLY.
NOT ONLY FOR THEM BUT YOU GUYS,
WHAT IS IT LIKE?
MOST.
PATIENTS ARE VERY ANXIOUS.
THEY'RE SCARED.
THEY THINK IT MAY BE PAINFUL.
IT'S COLD.
OUR THERAPY ROOMS ARE COLD.
UNFORTUNATELY WE HAVE YOU DRESS
INTO A HOSPITAL GOWN.
YOU'RE LAYING ON THAT COLD TABLE
FREEZING, BUT A THERAPIST,
THEY'RE VERY UNDERSTANDING.
ATTHEY KNOW HOW YOU FEEL.
MOST OF THEM HAVE A FAMILY
MEMBER GO THROUGH TREATMENT.
THEY UNDERSTAND YOUR ANXIETY.
IT'S HARD NOT TO BE ANXIOUS BUT
YOUR TEAM IS THERE TO HELP
SUPPORT YOU.
TAIZO: YOU'RE THERE TO
SUPPORT THEM.
AND THERE ARE TIPS COMING DOWN
FOR THAT FIRST TIME THAT PEOPLE
SHOULD KEEP IN MIND?
IT'S A LITTLE COLD BUT CAN WE
BRING FAMILY MEMBERS?
ANY TIPS OR THINGS THEY SHOULD
KNOW ABOUT?
FAMILIES MEMBERS ARE NOT
LAMMED TO BE -- ALLOWED TO BE NEAR THE
TREATMENT AREA.
IF IT HELPS YOU, ABSOLUTELY,
HAVE SOMEONE BRING YOU.
TAIZO: SPEAKING OF THOSE
TREATMENTS, HOW OFTEN AND HOW
LONG WILL A PATIENT EXPECT TO
COME FOR THE PROCESS?
USUALLY WE'LL COME ANYWHERE
FROM ONE TO 45 TREATMENTS,
DEPENDING ON YOUR CANCER AND THE
TREATMENT THAT HAS BEEN
DISCUSSED BY THE RADIATION
ONCOLOGY.
YOU'LL COME MONDAY THROUGH
FRIDAY.
EVERYONE GETS A BREAK FROM THE
WEEKEND.
IT DOES KILL THE CANCER CELLS
BUT THERE ARE NORMAL CELLS.
IT GIVES THEM TIME TO
REGENERATE.
TAIZO: I LOVE HOW THIS WHOLE
PROCESS, MANY TIMES THERE'S A
TEAM.
THERE'S ALSO THAT WARMTH, THAT
ALOHA.
YOU KNOW WHAT EVERYBODY IS GOING
THROUGH.
IT'S A LITTLE COLD BUT WE JUST