Side effects?

The aching legs and joints, it seems, are likely to be related to the treatment. Bother! Well, maybe this will be my only symptom and I'll escape the others. I have to say that if this is related to the radiotherapy session, it's happened really fast, since yesterday was only my second visit. I've been told that it'll probably "settle down in the next few days" but that if it doesn't, I should tell the doctor about it when I see him - and it is a him, so I'm not making assumptions here - and I'll be given something to address the pain. I'm glad I mentioned it, though, since I did wonder whether it might be dismissed as irrelevant, as symptoms so often are when presented to medical staff.

Despite the pain and the inconvenience of aching joints, I now feel confident that my concerns will be taken seriously, no matter how trivial they may seem to me. Having that degree of trust in my health care providers is, I think, vital, and, with each new team I see, I have to build that trust. Of course, it works both ways; every health professional I've seen since diagnosis has stressed the importance of telling them if I experience any pain, discomfort or anything else that I feel isn't 'right'. While we probably all 'put on a brave face' and ignore what seem to be relatively minor issues, I've learned in the last few weeks that it is extremely important to dispense with the stiff upper lip and to go into great detail about your ailments.

So, be warned - after this experience, never ask me that innocuous (and meaningless) quetion, "How are you?". If you do, I'll tell you!