Recently Diagnosed or Relapsed? Stop Looking For a Miracle Cure, and Use Evidence-Based Therapies To Enhance Your Treatment and Prolong Your Remission
Multiple Myeloma an incurable disease, but I have spent the last 25 years in remission using a blend of conventional oncology and evidence-based nutrition, supplementation, and lifestyle therapies from peer-reviewed studies that your oncologist probably hasn't told you about.
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Myeloma, Radiotherapy, Gut Microbiota
A diagnosis of multiple myeloma may necessitate radiation to your lower spine, sacrum or iliac crest. It did for me. I thought that I understood the side effects I developed from radiation therapy. The research linked below tells me that the radiation therapy damaged more than the bone and nerves.
The challenge here is that MM patients need a healthy microbiome. Radiation therapy to your abdomen or pelvis can create sme of the side effects listed below as well as damage your gut health.
As MM patients live longer and longer, I believe those MM patients who have had radiation therapy will experience the long-term side effects described below.
Please consider Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy ASAP following your radiation therapy.
Exercise Routine For Pelvic Radiation Therapy
Could the radiation therapy I underwent in early 1995, six courses of VAD induction therapy I underwent from 2/95-7/95 and then the high-dose cytoxan therapy in September of ’95 have damaged my gut microbiome, reducing the efficacy of the autologous stem cell transplant that I underwent in December of 1995?
That’s a rhetorical question, obviously. But for MM patients considering ASCT, the health of your gut microbiome is worth considering.
Are you a MM patient undergoing radiation therapy to your lower back, sacrum or iliac crest? Scroll down the page, post a question or comment, and I will reply to you ASAP.
Hang in there,
David Emerson
- MM Survivor
- MM Cancer Coach
- Director PeopleBeatingCancer
A major side effect of radiation to the abdomen and pelvis is gastrointestinal issues like diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and cramping, a condition known as radiation enteritis. Other side effects include urinary problems such as an increased need to urinate or burning, skin changes like redness and irritation, and potential long-term effects such as fertility problems or issues with sexual function.
Short-term side effects
- Gastrointestinal: Diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, stomach cramps, and urgency to have a bowel movement are common.
- Urinary: Increased need to urinate, burning, or blood in the urine.
- Skin: Redness, dryness, itching, or soreness in the treated area.
- Fatigue: A common side effect of radiation therapy is general fatigue.
Long-term or late side effects
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Gastrointestinal:
Some people may experience chronic issues like continued diarrhea, constipation, or a feeling of needing to have a bowel movement even when the bowel is empty (tenesmus). Rectal bleeding can also occur.
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Urinary:
Long-term bladder problems or incontinence can occur in some individuals.
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Fertility and Sexual Health:
Radiation can impact fertility by reducing sperm count or the quality/quantity of eggs. It can also cause temporary or permanent changes to sexual function, such as erectile dysfunction in men or vaginal dryness and changes in sensation for women.
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Other:Rarely, radiation can cause tissues to harden (fibrosis), leading to mobility issues or problems with organ function, and may increase the risk of lymphedema.
Interplay Between the Abdominopelvic Radiotherapy and Gut Microbiota
Radiotherapy is a crucial treatment modality for abdominopelvic malignancies, with particularly significant effects on the gut microbiota. A reciprocal relationship exists between abdominopelvic radiotherapy and the gut microbiota.
The gut microbiota plays vital roles in maintaining host health, modulating immune responses, and regulating metabolic functions. Abdominopelvic radiotherapy induces significant alterations in both the diversity and abundance of the gut microbiota, which may be critically involved in the development of radiotherapy-related adverse effects and the compromised therapeutic efficacy.
Concurrently, the distinct biological properties of the gut microbiota and its derivatives can also influence the host response to radiotherapy. Understanding this interplay between abdominopelvic radiotherapy and the gut microbiota is of paramount importance for improving patient quality of life and treatment outcomes.
This review discusses the impact of abdominopelvic radiotherapy on gut microbiota composition and summarizes recent advances in microbiota-targeted interventions aimed at radioprotection and radiosensitization, providing a theoretical foundation for optimizing radiotherapy for abdominopelvic malignancies.
Myeloma, Radiotherapy, Gut Microbiota Myeloma Radiotherapy Gut Microbiota Myeloma Radiotherapy Gut Microbiota