Pig Heads and CT CDs
When we last left our heroine, me, she was scheduled for a planning session at the radiology clinic, for be followed by a special CT. This turned out to be a hoot.
First, I must explain that I am a night owl. I do not do mornings willingly or well. The planning session was scheduled for 9 a.m. on Nov. 14. I actually got there on time. Anyone who knows me understands that this was a miracle of the first order.
The first order of business was getting this mask thingy made. I was told that I would have a piece of plastic placed over my face that would mold to it and would help in keeping my head still for the treatments.
I was laid down on a table and my head positioned on a clear hard plastic head rest. The mask started out as a flat piece of white plastic with holes in it. The plastic had been warmed up to soften it and it was quickly placed over my head and pulled all the way down in back to where it would be fastened down to the head rest. As it was cooling, Dr. Han pulled up on the area around my nose a bit and did the same on the part over my eyes to give me room to blink.
Then she and the two techs started doing various things, which may or may not have included taking measurements. They attached pieces of tape to the mask and made marks of various kinds. At this point, Dr. Han mentioned that I might lose some hair over my right ear near the eye. Damn.
But the good news was that I would probably not need a tattoo. One way that radiologists ensure that the radiation is hitting the right spots is to use one or two tiny tattooed dots as markers. It looks like I will not need a tattoo.
(Digression: I mentioned to my brother Mike that I might need a tattoo on my face and he told me to get one of the big tribal kind, one like what Mike Tyson has on his face. Do I have to explain that my brother is my older brother?)
After about 15 minutes of my laying there and them doing various things, they started to take the mask off. Uh-oh. Some of my hair had molded into the mask and was now caught. Releasing the mask was a bit painful and slow because of this. So, I have already lost hair to this whole procedure.
Now I took the mask and the head rest with me to the hospital. I was going to have a CT scan done with my head clamped in place just the way it will be during the radiation treatments.
The mask is now a long odd shaped piece since it goes well past my head to reach the head rest. As I was carrying around, I was trying to figure out what it reminded me of. When I handed it to the tech at the hospital, it finally came to me. It looked very much like the head of a pig.
“Does it look like the head of a pig to you?” I asked as I handed it over.
“Yes,” she said. “Wow, it really does. Isn’t that odd?”
“But it is molded to my face!!!!” I started laughing uproariously and the tech decided to walk away from the crazy lady. Sensible woman.
The CT got done and I was handed a CD of it. I took the CT CD and brought it to the radiology clinic and went home.
I am now due to have my first treatment on Monday, Nov. 21. Do stay tuned.
First, I must explain that I am a night owl. I do not do mornings willingly or well. The planning session was scheduled for 9 a.m. on Nov. 14. I actually got there on time. Anyone who knows me understands that this was a miracle of the first order.
The first order of business was getting this mask thingy made. I was told that I would have a piece of plastic placed over my face that would mold to it and would help in keeping my head still for the treatments.
I was laid down on a table and my head positioned on a clear hard plastic head rest. The mask started out as a flat piece of white plastic with holes in it. The plastic had been warmed up to soften it and it was quickly placed over my head and pulled all the way down in back to where it would be fastened down to the head rest. As it was cooling, Dr. Han pulled up on the area around my nose a bit and did the same on the part over my eyes to give me room to blink.
Then she and the two techs started doing various things, which may or may not have included taking measurements. They attached pieces of tape to the mask and made marks of various kinds. At this point, Dr. Han mentioned that I might lose some hair over my right ear near the eye. Damn.
But the good news was that I would probably not need a tattoo. One way that radiologists ensure that the radiation is hitting the right spots is to use one or two tiny tattooed dots as markers. It looks like I will not need a tattoo.
(Digression: I mentioned to my brother Mike that I might need a tattoo on my face and he told me to get one of the big tribal kind, one like what Mike Tyson has on his face. Do I have to explain that my brother is my older brother?)
After about 15 minutes of my laying there and them doing various things, they started to take the mask off. Uh-oh. Some of my hair had molded into the mask and was now caught. Releasing the mask was a bit painful and slow because of this. So, I have already lost hair to this whole procedure.
Now I took the mask and the head rest with me to the hospital. I was going to have a CT scan done with my head clamped in place just the way it will be during the radiation treatments.
The mask is now a long odd shaped piece since it goes well past my head to reach the head rest. As I was carrying around, I was trying to figure out what it reminded me of. When I handed it to the tech at the hospital, it finally came to me. It looked very much like the head of a pig.
“Does it look like the head of a pig to you?” I asked as I handed it over.
“Yes,” she said. “Wow, it really does. Isn’t that odd?”
“But it is molded to my face!!!!” I started laughing uproariously and the tech decided to walk away from the crazy lady. Sensible woman.
The CT got done and I was handed a CD of it. I took the CT CD and brought it to the radiology clinic and went home.
I am now due to have my first treatment on Monday, Nov. 21. Do stay tuned.
posted by Valerie DeBenedette at 9:22 PM
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