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rvillella

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I completed the Whole Brain Radiation last month and had a follow up last Friday, just waiting on the results of the MRI. I asked the Rad Doc how long I would be stuck not able to drive or anything and their answer was not for quite a while. Have any of you out there gone through this? And if so how long were you unable to get behind the wheel? I feel so useless when I can't even take my wife's car to get the oil changed or to have it washed. It's the little things in life that you miss.

Ralph

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Hi Ralph,

Glad to hear you are done with the WBR, but sorry about the driving issue. :roll: It is so frustrating. My friend had WBR last year and wasn't cleared for driving for a period of time. I don't remember how long it was though. I just wanted to send my best wishes and hopes that you'll be back on the road again soon!

Warm regards,

Welthy

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For some reason the doctors from Duke and the VA seem to feel that there is a chance of seizure or eye trouble. Haven't had any of the normal systems but they are still afraid of the medical/legal aspects of me having an accident because of the radiation.

Ralph

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My husband did the full round of WBR and drove himself too and from the treatments himself. Since he wasn't experiencing any vision troubles prior that wasn't an issue. He was given dexamethadone to minimize any brain swelling and was told if he experienced any symptoms he shouldn't think of getting behind the wheel.

The only other concern was the extreme fatigue the WBR caused. There were a couple of times that I received a call from him where he started out for somewhere feeling fine, but halfway through the drive he got so exhausted he didn't think he could keep his eyes open so he'd pull over and have me come pick him up.

After looking back, he probably shouldn't have driven as much as he did, but my man was stubborn and refused to let anyone tell him he wasn't strong enough to take care of himself.

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Hey Carleen,

I came on board after you left (I think) , but have read your story in full. God Bless, hope all is well. Thanks for weighing in. :)

Vic has vision loss, and was asked not to drive by the oncologist. After surgery, nothing improved, but he began to drive anyway. I hold my breath daily, hoping that nothing happens. There's nothing I can do to stop the driving, though I try to limit it.

So glad to see you post.

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I think the not driving is an overall safety precaution for the patient and other people. No one knows for sure how each person will react to WBR and the docs, responsibly so, just want everyone safe. The effects typically don't begin hitting a person until after the WBR is over. Tony also is cautioned not to drive without his oxygen for the same reasons. Just another little wrinkle in the fabric of lc.

Welthy

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My mother was told not to drive even before she started WBR. She never drove again, which was fine with her. One less thing for her to worry about.

Except for one day when I picked her up to take her for a visit with my brother's family. He lived only about a mile away taking side streets so I asked if she wanted to drive us there. She jumped at the chance and I'll never forget the smile on her face when she beeped the horn as we approached the house. Or, the smile on my brother's face when he realized who was driving. A moment of normalcy. And then he yelled at me for letting her drive in the first place. :D

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