Side Effects of Palliative Radiation Therapy to the Brain

Radiation treatment can cause you to feel fatigue, regardless of the site of your treatment.

Cancer-related fatigue is very common, though we don't know the exact mechanism for it. It is temporary, and you will regain some of your energy within a few weeks after you finish your treatment.

Radiation must travel through your skin before it reaches its target. In this process, it may irritate your scalp, causing it to look and feel sunburned. This is also called radiation dermatitis. It happens when the radiation beams both enter or leave through your skin.

It might be uncomfortable, like a sunburn, but can be managed using moisturizing lotion on the area. It usually goes away within a week or two after your treatments have finished.

Many people will lose their hair shortly after treatment to the whole brain. It grows back, but it may take several months.

Some people will experience headaches or nausea during treatment. This happens because radiation can cause swelling inside the brain. Let your doctor know if you have headaches or nausea during treatment. You may need to take a steroid medication while on treatment to reduce the swelling.

After whole brain radiation, some people lose some mental abilities, such as becoming more forgetful or feeling slower when thinking.

For instance, it might take you longer to calculate the tip on a restaurant bill, or you may need to start writing a grocery list or other reminders while before you didn't have to.

Brain radiation will not affect your ability to recognize loved ones or make you disoriented or delusional. It just means you may notice that you are not as quick or sharp as you were before treatment.

Not everyone has these side effects, and those who do experience them to a varying degree. The loss of some mental abilities may be permanent.