Let's Try Radiation Therapy!

Not my favorite thing I've ever done!
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[@curiosamente]

"Life gave me cancer and Dakota's sushi". Words to live by.

[@impishDullahan]

And would make a great t-shirt.

[@AmazingQuill]

When lfe gives you cancer and Dakota's sushi. Make radioactive sushi

[@FackFaceMcAcehole]

Right up there with "Not dying from radiation poisoning is amazing."

[@NatiNugasu]

McDonald's is life i guess ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[@lyxthen]

Hola curiosamente!!

[@Chris_winthers]

A moment of silence for dakota, who ordered lunch/dinner and got some random guy's boba tea instead

[@jill37]

Or he got nothing and some other random person got boba?

[@soniccookie655]

That happened to me. My roommate ordered McDonald’s dinner, but a bunch of ice creams instead. Asked for a redelivery… got more ice creams. But each set came with a box of chicken nuggets, so he was happy.

[@OrigamiMarie]

That's what I was thinking. Like, even if Dakota likes bubble tea, that's not enough calories if they actually needed a meal 🙁

[@joanhoffman3702]

@@soniccookie655 I call that a win-win.

[@jase_allen]

If he contacted DoorDash to inform them of the error, they would have resent the sushi order and he'd get to enjoy both.

[@aaron670]

This whole series has just made me realize that at its core modern-day cancer therapy is just about killing the cancer as quickly as possible while killing the patient as slowly as possible.

[@theidioticbgilson1466]

hey, at least it's better than the mediaeval method of killing the patient and the cancer at the same rate

[@mahoganywolf8843]

It's the fundamental problem with cancer- it's made of yourself. Any treatment which effectively kills cancer cells will kill other cells, because they're all your own cells. The main distinguishing factor is how rapidly cancer cells divide, so therapies that target dividing cells are most effective. Unfortunately this also includes some regular cell types too.

[@dynamicworlds1]

That is correct.

[@nolankanski9116]

Kinda makes it sound like something out of Warhammer 40k

[@dynamicworlds1]

@@nolankanski9116 not inaccurate tbh.

[@litzi5536]

To give some heads up: Even the "worst" treatment is better than no treatment. My mom had a similar cancer as Hank has around the age of 40, she got radiation therapy in the 90s, then in 2009 she had secondary cancer because of the old ways of radiation therapy. I am happy to tell, she is still going strong at the age of 70. She lost her voice (to be exact, her throat) in 2009 and she is still a part time practicing lawyer, she is taking jazz ballet classes twice a week and loves moving houses.

[@stryke5729]

Moving houses is a very fun hobby and not for the feint of heart

[@vacafuega]

She can move houses?? The radiation really hulked her out 😲

[@JasmineTea127]

I'm so happy for your Mom. It's wonderful she's thriving, it's inspiring.

[@wisteria6656]

@@vacafuega😂😂😂

[@IanOPadrick]

​@RepentandbelieveinJesusChristWhat is the point of you?

[@jon1913]

And as they say in our hometown, "Not dying from radiation poisoning is AMAZING!"

[@Kfroguar]

NDFRPIA!

[@FromRussia_With_Love]

#JustKyivThings

[@vigilantcosmicpenguin8721]

DFTNDFRP

[@veggiet2009]

"..." - Hank Green (2023)

[@fireyjon]

I am generally in favor of not dying of anything, but not dying of radiation poisoning is especially joyous.

[@simonmay1671]

I'm a radiotherapist! It's so rare we get noticed, hope everyone treated you well :)

[@Aksel27]

I'm seriously considering it as a career pathway. I just finished my B.S. Physics.

[@spaminbox]

i hope your radio feels better.

[@simonmay1671]

@@Aksel27 It's definitely a good one if you're into physics but want a job that involves person to person interaction with a healthy dose (👀) of clinical knowledge!

[@stellwyn]

Our radiotherapists in the UK are on strike atm! We appreciate all radiologists so much ❤

[@simonmay1671]

@@stellwyn I was on the picket on Wednesday! :)

[@Yesthatsmee]

I am a radiation oncologist. Your understanding and explanation of the treatment is stellar, I'd hire you to inform patients!! Will steal the phrase ' you just have to lie down for 8 minutes and then can get McDonald's '. Best of luck on your journey to cure.

[@amyhaigh1079]

Thanks for helping folks! I hope I never need your services but I'm glad you're out there providing them.

[@chrisogrady28]

​@@amyhaigh1079i mean it is a job, money is changing hands, it's not charity work

[@oldasyouromens]

I'm glad that you can direct patients to this video, also - I feel like a patient like Hank should have done an explanation of like, the femoral osteotomy I got when I was 16 and that would have given me a real idea of what the eff is going to happen. Like, I want to make that podcast, that video series, that thing now.

[@amyhayutin1738]

Can you describe to me why my oncologist chose to give me monoclonal antibody infusions plus chemo for NHL instead of radiation plus chemo like Hank for his HL? It worked so I’m not complaining, just curious.

[@Gr8Dane001]

Just show your patients this video. Short and sweet and it helps Hank out as well

[@N7P2R2]

Hank’s interaction with Dakota’s sushi is giving the same energy as john’s Netflix hacker that he became friends with

[@hafsaz4513]

Omar! I hope he still has access to the Netflix account 😂

[@ABTafevideos2022]

Or the guy that shared his google maps location with Hank! Hank always knows where that one guy is!

[@AshBash1824]

Omg OMAR!!!

[@jessherselfable]

I think about Omar all the time. 😂

[@thethoughtemporium]

I wonder if they'd let you take a geiger counter in there or something, just so you can at least "know" when the beam is on, beyond just sitting in weird silence. But then, I don't actually know that would make the experience better. But my nerd brain would LOVE to take a gamma spectrum or something in that room while it's going. Like seeing the exact color of the radiation rainbow I was being hit with to cure the cancer.

[@cadepeters4087]

You’re such a nerd I love it

[@mariannetfinches]

My mum once got radioactive iodine treatment for an overactive thyroid. My dad was a physics teacher. Her face & throat set the Geiger counter off somewhat, along with all our noses for some reason?

[@RJL7]

And then check if there are weird hot spots and stuff. That would be so cool. Also the whole, what colour is my treatment thing. This is a really good idea.

[@vlogbrothers]

Oh, it makes a little noise when it turns out...the most pathetic tiny little noise, but a noise.

[@fionafiona1146]

​@@vlogbrothersinteresting

[@lisafulkerson6903]

Hi Hank. My dad is an engineer for the company (Varian Medical) that I believe designed the radiotherapy equipment at your oncology department. He is incredibly passionate about the work he does, and takes so much pride as an engineer at Varian. He pays attention to every single detail on those machines before giving it the okay for shipment. He's been at the company for 40 years now, still doing the same work maintaining the radiology equipment. I will tell my dad to watch this video when he gets a chance so he can give more details on the machine for me to share in the future! Take care always! Lisa

[@vlogbrothers]

I;m headed back in right now and I'll check to see what machine it is!

[@marlinmixon3004]

The story of SIg and Russell Varian is an interesting one. They developed early radar tubes during WWII, largely self-taught and were pioneers of what would become Silicon Valley.

[@TomCantDance]

If he works on the proton machines, tell him thank you from me too. I'm lucky enough to work with them every day

[@hockeyhunter123]

I work on the PET software at Varian's parent company (Siemens Healthineers). It's always surreal to see these machines out in the wild!

[@Biga101011]

The engineers are the secret heros keeping everything up and running for patients to receive their treatments!

[@YouTubeCatEngineer]

I had 23 doses of targeted radiation. You don't feel anything DURING the radiation treatment but the effects build up over time. Chemo had more overall discomfort but I was surprised at the profound fatigue I experienced a few weeks AFTER the radiation treatment was done. I wish you the best Hank. Plan on some down time in the weeks following the end of your radiation.

[@MKPiatkowski]

I had 24. It's months and I'm still tired. And yes, I was so fatigued a few weeks out.

[@susangibbons312]

Radiation oncologist here. Hank will probably get less radiation overall. I'm sure he'll have some skin irritation and fatigue (both partly due to the combination with chemo), but he should tolerate it well. Go Hank!!

[@tsnandy]

But did you get the SHOT LIKE FATHER HANK TOLD YOU TO? kzbin.info/www/bejne/fmG8aKaLm7F5e6M

[@telegramsam]

My mother had radiation treatments a few years ago, she said it took a few weeks for the side effects to show up, and it took about a year for her to feel completely normal again. Granted, she had surgery & radiation, but not chemo, so YMMV.

[@aintmisbehavin7400]

I wondered if that'd be the case as well. Cool to hear from an oncologist in response!

[@TheGyldenlove]

I am a radiation oncology medical physicist and I have been waiting for YEARS for someone to do a good video on radiotherapy. Thank you for making my day.

[@larariggs1496]

Thank you for your work! My radiation oncology team was phenomenal! Knowing my case was reviewed by multiple people to get everything just right, then my tiny constellation of tattoos they used to line everything up, the radiation techs who took so much care getting me properly positioned every single time, and the one who listened when I said I was having new throat symptoms, recognized what it was esophagitis) and by the time I was done with treatment that day, had a call out to the NP who had prescriptions already called in and a list of things to do to help ease the discomfort. I've been done over a year and am dealing with residual radiation pneumonitis, but again, the team was so great in helping work through all of it, even getting me approved for hyperbaric oxygen therapy!

[@shawnguy3317]

Me too! I’m doing my residency right now. Good to see another medical physics nerd fighter

[@1513jlnight]

Same here! Just started residency this year :) it’s so great to see us doing good things for others

[@pdannysan13]

As a radiation oncologist, I have to admit, a little part of me is happy that you are getting radiotherapy because I always wanted you to cover my field. I am very biased, of course, but RT is one the most, if not the most, cost effective treatment for cancer and a lot of times it gets the short end of the stick. So, I am a bit 'happy' that you have to cover this. By the way, Hank in this video, covers more in less then 5min than some senior physicians do in 30min. Such an ace at explaining! You kick that Hodgkin's butt Hank!

[@popenieafantome9527]

Didn’t experience it myself, but did see a session they did to my mother. It was a little bizarre looking since it was for her head. So they placed a plastic mold over her face and head to keep her from moving. But it was indeed amazing to see such a large machine glide like butter in a circle around my mother. My mother was allowed to keep the plastic face mold thing, but it obviously didn’t hold any pleasant reminders so we threw it away. Overall, not too bad. But she absolutely HATED the MRI machine. It gave her claustrophobia which i didn’t know she had until then. It didn’t even occur to me that a blind patient could get claustrophobic. She also didn’t like how loud it was either.

[@lrfcowper]

​@@popenieafantome9527You can definitely feel the closeness of the MRI machine even with your eyes closed. And the noise is very disconcerting

[@MKPiatkowski]

@@popenieafantome9527 True, the radiation machine is much easier to deal with than the MRI. Besides how load the MRI is, you are completely enclosed, which isn't the case with the radiation machine. I think they had to drug my mom when they needed to put her in an MRI.

[@sashabrown1796]

Yay! I'm hoping for more research into oligometastatic treatment aiming to cure with radiation. It seems like a great solution!

[@prapanthebachelorette6803]

He’s a great explainer indeed 😊

[@livtupi]

"You lay there for 8 mins and go get McDonald's" is bizarrely futuristic cool science

[@HexerPsy]

You then realize they do 4-6 patients per hour and see about 30 patients per day. And since most patients come in for 5 days a week, you get to know your patients a little over the course of the 3-6 weeks. And thats just one machine - the hospital has multiple ones.

[@hazelcooper5539]

Totally true though! The McDonalds is the best bit of the whole process! You get irradiated, you definitely deserve a treat❤️

[@vigilantcosmicpenguin8721]

I love seeing the mundanity in things that are miracles of technology.

[@julezthealien2467]

This made me laugh so hard 😂

[@MeganJester]

@@Patrick_Ross Eating McDonald’s doesn’t cause cancer in your lymph nodes 🙄

[@mjshandy8383]

I seriously love Hank. He turned a horrible situation into a learning opportunity for all of us, and I'm truly appreciative. Not only that, but he helps us understand what the process is for people we know with cancer.

[@jaymehancock2941]

This is so true. My dad was diagnosed with cancer around the same time as Hank (different type) and seeing Hank start the journey and talk about it has been really helpful.

[@vigilantcosmicpenguin8721]

I love how there's a secret entrance for cancer patients. It's like being part of a top-secret organization, except it's the most sucky top-secret organization you could be part of.

[@tenthz]

The cancer center that is part of the Penn State Hershey Medical Center (our local hospital) also has a separate entrance. If you're going there, you also get free valet parking! The separate entrance thing is because the majority of cancer patients are immunocompromised and it helps to limit their exposure to the more contagious-y folks in the rest of the hospital.

[@kpl-CA]

I get it. ALL severely ill patients deserve support... But there's a couple million people who DO NOT have cancer, but we have other nasty diseases that we *also* get chemotherapy, radiotherapy, biologic therapy and a very rough ride for. We get the same hideous symptoms, same risk of death, same disabilities... But none of the support. No playrooms or toys or games or visitors or camps or public support for OUR kids. No valet parking, no publicity, no support services for us. We don't have the "right" label. We also don't get "cured", ever. We don't get remission.

[@sprotte6665]

@@kpl-CA I had no idea there were other illnesses treated with chemotherapy and radiation! Can you tell me what some of them are? I'd love to read up on them.

[@kpl-CA]

@@sprotte6665 a *bunch* of the more severe auto-immune and auto-inflammatory diseases utilize chemotherapy, radiotherapy, surgery, biologics, etc in treatment. Sometimes the dose differs from Oncology protocols, sometimes it doesn't. Often those "other" diseases require YEARS of treatment, not just weeks. Abnormal cell proliferation, neoplasm formation, inflammation, etc are not exclusive to Oncology patients. It's EASY to look up this information to verify. Millions of patients live with all the same side effects, from the SAME treatments, often in the SAME INFUSION ROOM, but they get NONE OF THE SUPPORT. Diagnosis based favouritism is especially obvious AND heinous in Pediatrics. I have literally watched "Child Life" staff enter a Children's Hospital infusion & Chemotherapy Day Medicine center, with multiple bays of kids separated only by curtains... And they very deliberately check charts, then ONLY offer donated crafts, toys, etc to ONLY to the beds with Oncology kids. I've witnessed severely ill & terminal kids cry and wail "What about me? Can I get some colouring too?!?" and they are IGNORED. Same treatments, same place, same time, same staff, NO SHORTSGE OF GIFTS... just discrimination. I've watched it happen for *YEARS*. Made formal complaints. Talked to staff, parents, kids. Called reporters. Posted about it online CONSTANTLY. Nobody cares. After all, when was the last time anyone ever took a casserole to a neighbor with a severe chronic illness? NEVER. Oh, but whisper the all-important diagnosis "CANCER", and the whole NEIGHBORHOOD shows up 🤷 Everyone fundraises, volunteers, fusses and helps out, and the patient is suddenly a "hero" forever. Meanwhile five doors down a kid with MD or CF is ignored to death. Take a good, long look at the neglect/denial of awareness, support, facilities and support services for non-Oncology *but still severely ill* children VS the "embarrassment of riches" that is commonly seen in Pediatric Oncology. This is a *HUGE* policy discussion in Pediatrics right now. If you think Medical Favouritism is a lie... ask a Pediatric Psych team about how many former "Cancer Kids" go through serious behavioural issue treatment/adjustment periods, throwing tantrums, defiant, petulant, entitled... post treatment. Ask why treating "Cancer Siblings" for NEGLECT is a huge area. There is a known pattern of overindulgence with Oncology kids. It causes issues. Meanwhile other severe diagnosis kids, and TERMINAL kids, typically suffer from severe Depression, Anxiety and Suicidal Ideation... due to medical neglect, years of minimization, and blatant erasure by those who imagine themselves "helpers". But they often AREN'T. Ask Children's Hospital staff members if ALL their "Child Life" resources like playrooms, book carts, gifts, toys, craft supplies, swimming pools, game console, lounges, the hospital school, "Child Life" employees, free tickets, celebrity visits, free camps, the "Beads of Courage" program, volunteers, even just "treat" foods, or a private room... are even offered to ALL admitted, severely ill or terminal kids. The honest answer is *NO*. Oncology first. The favouritism limiting resources to only *one group* is blatant, and accepted. Excused. "Traditional". Even the CDC pain control guidelines for opioid use single out cancer patients as a "special" group. The ONLY exception. Only they are exempt from general guidelines, with "special" increased access to pain medications for ONLY cancer. But every other severe pain patient, regardless of diagnosis, QOL, prognosis, history, is summarily judged to be INVALID. If a severely ill child saying "I wish I had cancer instead..." 'shocks' you, then you don't know any severely ill kids. Because that sentiment is common. Kids see who gets care, and who doesn't. Those kids KNOW they don't matter. All complex, severely ill patients see the blatant favouritism & dishonesty. The influence of DISEASE MARKETING GROUPS who benefit from DONATIONS for ONE CAUSE ONLY are out of control. Cancer is an enormous money-maker. Those groups are now *dictating* resource allocation and treatment parameters at most hospitals, and they are very deliberately creating a VERY biased, dishonest, marketable fiction. (Don't believe me? Watch the NFB Documentary classic "Pink Ribbons Inc", it covers corporate greed & Cancer, very well.)

[@kpl-CA]

@@sprotte6665 I hope you sincerely *DO* want to learn... but I doubt it. It's far more likely to be snark. 25+ YEARS of being a first-hand witness of diagnosis-based discrimination has proven to me people do *NOT* want to find out that their outsider/layman level perceptions are incorrect.

[@patrickcollier7090]

I hope Dakota is a Vlogbrothers fan so they get a little something more than just Hank's boba.

[@osmia]

Agree! Dakota? Are you here?

[@abbyg]

I hope Dakota is a Vlogbrothers fan and sends this video to Doordash as proof he got the wrong order, and gets a refund AND new sushi AND Hank's boba AND has a good laugh and a story to tell about it all later.

[@dylnpickl846]

For real... if I was Dakota I would have been devastated to receive a caffeinated sugar beverage instead of my savory food item. But seeing Hank Green eat my sushi and say my name would make it all okay again :P

[@daysimic8029]

Yeah. *Dakota frantically going through the recycling to retrieve the cup.^ Are we hoping for an autograph here?

[@tbella5186]

Im a little sad for Dakota, but quite happy Hank enjoyed their sushi! Thanks for taking us with you Hank! So much Love, from Kansas!

[@Copperyfoxx]

Hank has to be the most fun kind of patient for the doctors that are treating him. I keep imagining a doctor explaining a treatment and Hank going “that’s so cool!” 😂❤

[@hywodena]

The idea of doing it from multiple angles to spread out the damage while concentrating it in the correct area.. BRILLIANT

[@ps.2]

Yeah it's not unlike a big magnifying glass that takes sunlight and focuses all of it within the ring onto a small point, which then starts a fire.

[@emilycarr2913]

Wow, using photons as cancer treatment is an absolutely remarkable therapy

[@rachelashleyy13]

There's also proton therapy which, unlike photon, stops at the targeted organ and doesn't pass through it. That way you're damaging the surrounding tissues less. There is a lot of research happening to support is as a more widely used therapy. As such, there are fewer centers that offer proton therapy but it's a growing area of radiation oncology. Especially for younger patients and cancers closer to vital organs where it's more important to lessen the impact on surrounding tissues.

[@HexerPsy]

@@rachelashleyy13 But protons have the issue of uncertainty, where you need a margin of error for the density uncertainty towards your target. Especially for Hank's location in the axilla, the body contour is hard to get positioned right for protons with the arms up. You can easily shoot tangentially from the lungs in that area with photons, providing you with a very robust treatment plan. So there is no need for protons. Not to mention the need for a cyclotron and a much larger center and limited range of movement for the protons... From a clinical perspective, protons dont always provide real benefits for cancer patients, and coupled with the center's costs, few take the leap such an investment requires to build such centers. (Governments, insurance, hospitals usually working together on these projects.)

[@HexerPsy]

The idea is pretty old though... Shortly after the invention of x rays doctors started experimenting with x rays on skin lesions. Sometimes with good success. The idea to treat cancers was a pretty early idea - later work (1920s) started increasing the power of the x rays to hit deeper tumors under the skin. The teach has developed from beefed up x ray tubes (orthovolt) to cobalt-60 being used for treatment. Later still, the first eletron beam accelerators came, followed shortly by high powered X rays. Today you can be treated in special MRI-linac combi devices and get daily adapted plans with the thinnest margins and extreme doses, while having fewer side effects than even 20 years ago. Its a great field to work in :D Development never stops.

[@checksanity]

@@rachelashleyy13So would that be what’s used for brachytherapy?

[@tialaramex]

There are a LOT of different photons. All electromagnetic radiation is photons. You can see the ones in red light, they look red, but you can't see X-rays (often used in radiotherapy) or Gamma rays or Microwaves (the ones in your Microwave oven, hence the name), or the ones that make your satellite TV work, or your mobile phone. It turns out frequencies of electromagnetic radiation are in some sense just photons with different energy levels. Some of them bounce off the outer surface of a human the way light does. Some penetrate only a little, some pass almost straight through. Some of them, when they strike an atom will ionise it, some won't, the ones that do are called ionising radiation, and ionising radiation is very bad for you. Or, for cancer cells. So fire ionising radiation at you, but mostly at the cancer cells. Hence the patient is inside a room with thick walls, and the doctors are (when it's operating) outside, far from the danger.

[@sudokujunkie4586]

I had colon cancer. It was hilarious. For my radiation therapy I had the pleasure of dropping trow in a room full of people. It was pretty awkward at first but after about the twentieth time I got used to it. I didn't get to see the system in operation because I was facing the other way while it was running. Like you said it's no big deal. At first. Eventually, the insults to your cells catch up. In my case the skin around my digestive outro became quite chapped. Fortunately, this peeked on a weekend I was working. Why was that good? Because nobody else was in the building. I could scream and curse as loud as I wanted. I took full advantage. Laughter may be the best medicine but screaming and cursing make a damn good palliative.

[@MoonLitChild]

As someone with chronic pain in equally sensitive body areas, screaming and cursing really does help in a different but equally important way to humor

[@NikkiDoesStufff]

I think studies have actually been done that say that cursing actually has a marked effect on reducing pain. So curse away dude. 👍

[@DK_365]

Hank, my wife was treated for HL 9 years ago. It's been interesting watching your videos as her disease and treatment was such a big event in our lives. She had a tiny dot tattoo on her chest as a marker for her radiation therapy. It was barely visible unless you knew where to look but she saw it in the mirror every day after treatment. A few years ago she had a purple ribbon tattooed over the dot to signify how she beat her cancer AND made it through all those treatments. Thanks for sharing your journey.

I took my late dad in for several radiation treatments last year. Lying flat and still caused him so much excruciating pain, but he was so brave in that freezing room, alone in silence. Barely moved at all. Sadly, it was just paliative, trying to relieve the nerve pain he had. Love you and I miss you, dad.

[@philipwipernickle4780]

First, Hank you're amazing. Having lost a parent to cancer its amazing to see you winning.

[@lisam5744]

Yep. I lost both of my parents to cancer and when Hank said the chemo had worked, I cried because I wish that I had been able to hear that from my family, too. Keep winning, Hank!

[@-Teague-]

+

[@larochejaquelein3680]

It‘s a shame that Hank lives in America where you have to pay $40k in medical bills to treat your cancer 🤦🤦🤦🤦🤦

[@vlogbrothers]

FOR NOW!

[@KBTibbs]

@@vlogbrothers may you continue to win for a significant chunk of time. But humanly significant and not, like, galactically significant.

[@mbs949]

My hospital also has a basement entrance for the cancer center! And special parking. BUT they also do iron infusions there so I very much felt like an imposter walking into it to get my treatments while pregnant

[@drnostalgia1]

Your commitment to science communication during this whole journey is absolutely remarkable . You and John had a large impact on my life for years, as a human, physician scientist and public health researcher, despite never meeting. I am, as many are, so grateful for all you do. I know you hear this a lot, but we are all rooting and praying (for those who do) for you. So thankful for your presence on this earth - which I hope is going to be long, prosperous and joyful.

[@songofruth]

The best part of radiation treatment was waiting in this waiting area that was for after you'd changed into your gown. Because the treatment is so short, there were usually several people. We'd strike up conversations. Some of us would comfort others. And sometimes we were comforted. I learned some valuable lessons there. Everyone's pain matters. Everyone's hopes matter. And everyone, no matter how "good" their cancer might be (such as mine being very treatable, well-defined and unlikely to have gone anywhere else), had the right to feel however they felt about their individual cancer journeys. I learned that most from a lovely woman who thought "Oh, joy, I'm retiring and now my husband and I can enjoy our golden years", only to have his cancer recur. She switched up her feelings to "How great that I have retired because now I can devote my time and energy to helping my husband" and then found out that she also had cancer. Her spirits were still up and she was the lady comforting me, who wouldn't even have had to be there if I'd been doing my self-checks as I should have been. It's a fickle world. Might as well enjoy the ride.

[@joeyfalgren8020]

Hank I love you and I know you’re going through a lot, but you can’t just devour someone else’s sushi #justicefordakota

[@hastyscorpion]

Once food is out of the hands of the people paid to handle it. You don’t ever give it back. That is a big no no in food service. It either goes in the trash or the person who got it keeps it.

[@jojoginni]

​@@hastyscorpionstill feels a little mean to be happy to have someone else's sushi 😅

[@catikins]

As long as it hasn’t been sitting out in the sun. It’s fair game. Sorry Dakota.

[@pemilystallwark]

​@@jojoginni @joeyfalgren8020 Dakota either got their sushi re-delivered, or a credit from Doordash! Dakota is fine xD

[@joeyfalgren8020]

@@hastyscorpion true but she still didn’t deserve having to watch hit science communicator hank green absolutely annihilate that sushi in front the entire internet 😢

[@Heeby-Jeebies]

"Not dying from radiation poisoning is amazing!" -Hank Green (he always says this)

[@PLuMUK54]

Thank you, Hank, for publicising this. My mother had radiation therapy to reduce a huge growth to a size that they could remove. She made sure that everyone that she knew was told, believing, rightly in my opinion, that the more you know, the less frightening things become. She also loved telling people that she was the only member of the family with tattoos, three dots used to line up the equipment. Like my mum, you are so positive. When she was told that she had cancer, dad looked like the off switch had been pressed, whilst I left the room before I cried in front of her. As I left the room, I heard her say to the doctor, "OK, what do we do next?", in much the same voice she might have asked someone to pass the sugar! I learned a lot that day, and when I had a major health issue, I was as positive as I could be. So, Hank, keep up the good work, and I look forward to hearing when you get the all-clear. Best wishes to you and your loved ones from England.

[@sophieinatardis]

I'm a radiation oncology medical physicist-- it's so exciting to hear my field so nicely explained!! I sometimes forget which words are jargon and which aren't, so I often struggle to explain what I do to outsiders.

[@pibyte]

Thanks for sharing your experiences. When I worked as a medic I would often bring patients to their radiation therapies - and some of the machines looked like right out of a James Bond villains lair behind this big metal doors. I have huge respect for the people working there and supporting their patients.

[@librakels3844]

I've always been terrified of getting cancer (which still hasn't gone away, I'm still scared of it), but watching your videos have helped a lot with me getting less random panic attacks about a POSSIBILITY of something like cancer happening.

[@EmilySmirleGURPS]

Cancer is such a foreign country, where the only thing we usually hear about it is There Be Dragons. The more we get to learn about the patients who live there, the doctors who battle the dragons, and the weapons they wield, the more we learn that it is a country we can live in and pass through. Don't get me wrong, still far too people getting eaten by dragons. But it's easier to hope you can make it out alive if you must go there, after you see how the treatments work, and you get to see them actually working.

[@toxendon]

​@@EmilySmirleGURPSThat's such a cool analogy and a nice way to look at it. Information is often a good shield against panikk attacks

[@ronblack7870]

hodgkins is highly curable unlike some of the others. pancreatic is bad as is ovarian. and radiation induced cancer like from his treatments is very bad.

[@Ajee02]

It's convinced me about doing check ups yearly, I ain't gonna go down to a disease because I got too lazy to go to the doctor once or twice a year

[@gildedbear5355]

Oddly, cancer doesn't scare me... No idea why. Diabetes, on the other hand, terrified me my whole life (family history, sister is type 1, mother diagnosed as delayed onset type 1, etc). Then I had the "wonderful" experience of being diagnosed with it during the pandemic... yeah, still terrifies me.

[@adamlanger3895]

Solidarity brother. Finished up 4 weeks in front of the radiation cannon in May this year. I laid in front of the UW cannon in Seattle. Your description of the process is quite good. I tried myself to explain the process to my peoples, but I'll share your vid with them. Thank you so much Hank. Here with you on the cancer recovery road.

[@MKPiatkowski]

Solidarity. Finished up my 4 weeks in March. May we all keep walking the recovery road.

[@andyaquitaine4225]

I gotta say from seeing Hank talk about this that the craft of treating cancer is something to behold. The amount of care and the creative precision that the medical field has developed to handle something that seems incredibly difficult and is both very dangerous and important is beyond impressive. Like, I couldn’t just sit down and do that without pulling from presumably centuries of calculated trial and error and combining efforts with vast amounts of other people to do it. Like in a different age with a different outlook this would be the kind of thing mythic cycles would come from.

[@chevystuffs5971]

Hi Hank! Im proud to say that I have made parts on the machine that uses the shutters you referenced. Some tricky machining goes into those parts and I'm so glad they are helping you and others. Be well and thank you for the content.

[@osmia]

+

[@MKPiatkowski]

Thank you for your work.

[@hayleytocchio1455]

I rarely comment on videos but just have to say thank you for sharing your journey and so much educational content over the years! I’m a radiation therapist and am studying to become a dosimetrist who creates the treatment plans and I watched so many of your chemistry and biology videos back when I was in school years ago! Great/accurate video! Sending healing prayers for continued recovery!

[@useazebra]

Another cool aspect of why this works: Particles deposit their energy at different depths depending on the energy of the particles. So they also protect you by tuning the energy of the particles to mostly dump their energy at the depth of the tissues of greatest concern. This phenomenon is part of why Anatoli Petrovich Bugorski survived his infamous encounter with a partial accelerator beam to the head.

[@claireriepe7832]

I knew exactly what you meant when the "cancer patients only" sign caught you by surprise. It takes awhile to internalize the diagnosis. I recall my friends teasing me for saying that I didn't feel like a cancer person. I never did really get used to it. Fortunately, I'm healthy now and hope you will soon be too. Thanks for all you do. I've been enjoying your content for years.

[@MKPiatkowski]

Same here. I never really identified with being a cancer patient. Even when I said the words, they didn't really feel like I was describing me.

[@sashabrown1796]

I remember this moment. The moment you become 'other'. By moment I mean like 5 months of slow adjustment to my new identity. But I do remember when I realized why it felt so weird. We don't identify with it because we have preconceived ideas about what a cancer person is. Anyone is a cancer person though. I think a good take away from it is that NO ONE is actually 'other'. We are all bumbling through life experiencing things, and being able to see people around us as regular folks no matter their circumstances is one of the lessons I'm super grateful for from the cancer experience.

[@brookeworley5140]

I got radiation therapy in 2018 to clean up the remnants of my benign brain tumor! I felt a little like I didn't belong some days, since I didn't have *cancer*, just a tumor that was messing with my sixth cranial nerve. Since mine was in my brain, I got a mesh mask formed to my face, and they would lock me into it so my head would stay in the same place during treatment. Good times 😅

[@mahoganywolf8843]

Yeah, the 'benign vs cancer' rules get thrown out a little when it comes to brain tumours, as your skull is a fixed box and a benign growth is just as capable of crushing your brain as a malignant one. Whereas a benign tumour in the abdomen can be enormous before the patient even realises it's there, because there's so much space to grow.

[@mahoganywolf8843]

Same reason some women only discover they're pregnant when they go into labour. A foetus could be considered a weird kind of benign tumour.

[@threeternity]

Hank this might be the most metal thing you’ve ever done. Besides peeing out cancer. ❤️

[@Loungelizardatwar]

My mother fought lung cancer for over three years and went through 6 rounds of chemo, had chest radiation, full head radiaton, was on clinical trials, and went through a brain radiation survery after her cancer metastasized to her brain. Cancer will put you through the hardest trials of your entire life. Tomorrow will be 3 years since my mother passed. I wish you well through your journey. I have been watching every single video and have been rooting for you the whole way. I know you’re strong and you got this Hank ❤

[@pfadiva]

I hate that the both of you had to through that journey and I hope you can think of your mother with peace.

[@Loungelizardatwar]

@@pfadiva Thank you- that means a lot. It is very hard to find peace but you just take it one day at a time. Life stops for no one and I know she is no longer in pain so that’s the most comforting thing.

[@jennawaugh2173]

I’ve been a radiation therapist for 8 years, I love hearing this from your perspective! I absolutely love my job and helping people

[@Dreaming_of_Adventures]

You know maybe Dakota didn't actually want sushi and really wanted boba or better yet they've never tried boba and now it's their favorite thing in the world ❤ So glad things are going well Hank and thank you for sharing your experience. It's great to see you in high spirits ❤

[@Rithene]

The most likely scenario is that Dakota got sushi a little late and also free boba, so I'd call this a win for them.

[@Dreaming_of_Adventures]

@@Rithene Yeeesss! That's even better 🤩

[@Kazemba]

I don't like boba, but I have a teenager who is obsessed with it. Hoping Dakota got the boba and was thrilled to see it (and then got sushi redelivered).

[@Dreaming_of_Adventures]

@@Kazemba to be fair it's not for everyone. it can be a texture thing which is totally valid. I'm very picky with my boba. it has to be the right squishiness or it's just meh for me

[@swagilyph]

My 73yo grandpa was just diagnosed with lung carcinoma. Hoping he can make it through the chemo/radiation and lobe resection. A video like this is very helpful to me right now, so thank you.

[@Anonmessiah]

My grandfather was diagnosed with stage 4 Hodgkin’s Lymphoma about the time you shared your diagnosis and he’s started chemo, it has been very comforting hearing your perspective and getting to learn a bit more about what the treatment process for Hodgkin’s looks like from someone going through it, so thanks!

[@BarlowJoseph]

Hi Hank, I'm a researcher in biology, I've been following vlogbrothers for more than a decade, I started watching during my undergraduate degree in neuroscience, and last year I moved into cancer research. I've found it an incredible topic to study as there's countless different possible avenues for therapy and countless variations to look at treating. Your perspective is an amazing insight into the thoughts of the people who I'm hopefully helping (down the line). I think it's very cool that you're focusing on the nuances of how people are treated, you've done a very nice job of describing photon beam therapy - I just want to add that the half dose finger parts is important because it means the areas surrounding the targeted area will not be damaged as much as the targeted area. This means that the ionizing radiation (which damages the cancer cells more anyway - ask if you want more details as to why) is much higher in the target area than the surrounding area meaning you hopefully shouldn't get much side effects in the surrounding tissue. "we could be doing more to prevent relapse but we aren't" was an interesting comment to me because I'm particularly intersted in this line of research, I'm sure you have already looked into what could be done because your enthusiasm for the science is obivous. But yes, there is work being done towards prevention of relapse and i hope to make some strides in that regard in my own career.

[@Bea_Esser]

Rooting for you Hank. I’m appreciative that you shared how radiation therapy works. It was quite interesting. Enjoy the sushi!

[@osmia]

+

[@spacey-sam]

I never really thought about radiation therapy as a thing, but WOW the science behind it is very cool

[@HexerPsy]

Its really cool :D Patients come in for some scans to prepare for treatment. Scans are made in the posture the patient will be treated in. The doctor (radiation oncologist / radioterapist ) will mark on the scans the tumor and a radiation technologist (or a medical physicist, or the doctor, depends on the country), will make a treatment plan optimizing the dose to the tumor, while reducing the dose to surrounding healthy tissue and organs as much as possible. As Hank said: the best chance of killing the tumor, with the least amount of side effects. Anyway - patient comes in and is positioned on the table in the same posture as the scans. Before the treatment starts a scan is made to verify the position, and the table can move to correct for the final milimeters. Its then up to the patient to remain still for a few minutes as the machine rotates and gives off the radiation dose. For most patients its like walking into a sci-fi movie, lay on the table - get pushed and pulled into the proper position by the techs, then they leave - machine does it thing. You dont feel it and home you go. (But they tend to get fatigue as a side effect, usually in the end of the 2nd week, as daily recovery costs energy).

[@BassLiberators]

TBH this is what I had always thought Chemotherapy was, I didn't realize they were different things.

[@LaurenMichele98]

I start my master's program in medical physics in 2 weeks and this video has me so excited to learn more about RT! While I am more interested in imaging and radiation safety, watching videos like this remind me how incredibly cool radiation therapy is! Happy not-dying-of-radiation-poisoning!

[@Biga101011]

Congratulations! A great field to get into.

[@citrussnacc]

I’m doing my masters right now, all the luck to you!

[@meursaultscourtroom8886]

Cheers to all you smart people out there that made this and other cancer treatments possible. We tend to forget about those folks who have worked so hard to extend the lives of our loved ones. Thank you doctors, researchers and techs, you're awe inspiring.

[@matth227]

I’m going to school to become a Radiation Therapist and it’s cool to see what the experience is like from the patient’s perspective. Thanks for another great video Hank!

[@MKPiatkowski]

Thank you! We need your work.

[@radicalbacon]

As a radiation worker, i am here for this

[@alexhurst3986]

I can't thank you enough for sharing this journey with everyone. It helps de-mystify cancer and you are providing a TON of information that most people don't have access to. It's always a bit awkward to ask a cancer patient about their treatments. You are one amazing person!

[@CMichael2276]

Cancer runs away screaming from the terror that is Hank Green. You are an inspiration dude. I can’t wait for you to make a song about this.

[@Waterflame]

"You lay there fore eight minutes and then you go get McDonald's.' YES!!! That's almost exactly how I felt after radiation! (Though, I usually got pizza or sushi...)

[@Katzenbaaren]

Radiation therapy is so very interesting to me, thanks for sharing your experience with it! Cancer is not fun but what we can accomplish with science is AMAZING! Thankful for the generations upon generations of people conglomerating information and learning from it and adding to it that got us to this point.

[@teedubz1342]

"And then you get McDonalds" as someone with A Lot of Doctors Appointments, I resonate with this on a concerning level

[@JBinFL]

I just finished eight weeks of vmat radiation treatment along with androgen depletion therapy for a recurrence of my prostate cancer. The radiation techs are heros. And youre right, it does take a while for "hey, im a cancer patient to sink in." You got this! 💪

[@Starlysh]

Hell yeah, backwards cap. You're so rad, Hank!

[@daanwilmer]

Hehe, "rad"...

[@kokothevaliant]

Honestly more doctors offices should have that amount of tissues. It might make everyone more comfortable with the fact that some of the saddest, most devastating news gets delivered in these environments. That being said, so glad things are going so well, Hank!

[@marcella7858]

I am a radiation therapy student, and a lot of time in studying is spent on patient care and treatment journeys. Its amazing to hear your story and perspective! All the best to you!

[@MKPiatkowski]

The work is so important. Thank you for taking it on.

[@brunerguy1]

That professional radiologists laud you for this video, thank you. You are a born teacher and learning from you (even if these lessons are not what you wanted to cover) has been terrific. More than a half century ago, my mother died of the same cancer that you are being so well treated for. All good wishes.

[@Hannah125i]

Swing and a miss. Wrong profession ENTIRELY.

[@vincenthevern9371]

@@Hannah125i you're right! Should have been radiology oncologists.

[@cavvieira]

Dude's been through chemo and still looks barely over 25. You're gonna live forever, Hank.

[@samiraperi467]

He'll be keeping Keith Richards company when all of us are gone.

[@mememammoth7708]

Long live the emperor

[@beth8775]

​@@mememammoth7708 You know, if we were going to have an emperor, I think Hank would be a good choice.

[@francescakyanda9182]

Hank wearing a backwards hat can now be crossed off my 2023 bingo card 😂

[@eli3163]

did you also have him eating Dakota´s sushi on your bingo card?

[@vlogbrothers]

It's just better for the lighting!

[@julesc1989]

​@@vlogbrothersalso helps that you look cool 😎

[@hultaelit]

@@vlogbrothers So in other words you didn't choose the thug life, the thug life chose you

[@DasGanon]

​@@vlogbrothersit's true. Bills are the bane of top lighting

[@dionbaillargeon4899]

I've lost both my mother in law and my father to cancer. In both instances they had devastating types of cancer and they both lived for less than four months after diagnosis. They were both unable to get any treatment, since their liver markers and kidney function never got good enough to even do chemo. That left me with a deep fear of cancer, to the point I've avoided any information on the subject ever since. Hank's videos and recovery have been VERY helpful in overcoming that trauma and facing that reality with optimism once again. Thank you so much for this. ❤

[@christyherrmann7745]

I just finished brachytherapy (radiation therapy for eye cancer) last week. Is neat hearing about your experience and how it differs. The office tissues - yes! Have enjoyed following your journey alongside mine. All the best to you, Hank. I look forward to your next video!

[@JojoSquires]

Thanks for being so informative with all of us throughout this process. It's really helping us all to be more understanding of the process as well as those going through the process.

[@All_The_Games]

I think we’re about to see a bunch of sci show videos on radiation therapy with Hank hosting

[@pirateslifeb]

Today is august 15th, 2023 and I finished 31 rounds of radiation and chemo on aug 10th! I have an Astrocytoma (brain cancer). They did do surgery 3 years ago, but I had to do radiation this summer because it was growing again. I went through proton therapy (it looks cool but maaaan what a trip)! Also if you're going through this too and no one told you YAY TO YOU FOR KICKIN' ASS you're doing great! Here's some things that my doctors didn't really go into detail about that are happening right now. The side effects are mild/ easy going so far. -earaches -extreme dizziness when standing too fast OR too slow (who knew)! -minor/ mild seizure activity (twitching, pupils being different sizes, confusion, and full blown "hey something's not right") -hearing loss/ weirdness Mine is ear ringing, amplified or muted sound, sensitivity to light, and the most annoying so far, the dreaded tone deafness! I've played guitar for over 15 years now and that's the only one that's bothering me so far. If Hank sees this thank you for keeping track of this process it's making it easier to explain to my family and friends!

[@SheBendsNotBreaks]

I'm a therapitic radiographer in the UK that specialised in treatment planning and the multileaf collimators (the moving shutter thingies) don't just shape the beam to your cancer, but they can also modulate the intensity of the radiation beam to ensure the dose in the area we are treating is nice and homogenous and really conformal to the cancer in all 3 dimensions, rather than having cold or hot spots that we used to have to deal with before that technology existed. Given how well you seem to understand your radiotherapy, i thought you might find that interesting.

[@TheSightOfTheStars]

Wishing you well on the next leg of your treatment journey Hank! I hope you get the most *rad* healthcare possible! ⚛️❤

[@willaminab7024]

Thank you for teaching us new things through your experience no matter what, you take everything as a chance of learning something new and then you share it with us. It's incredibly positive and incredibly helpful for the ones who struggle. Thank you Hank!!

[@jonisaacc8652]

I work as a Medical Dosimetrist. We are the people behind the scenes designing which angles the radiation will shoot from and designing the pattern of the “shutter” (we call it MLC patterns). It’s great to see more details about radiation therapy being discussed. Our main general thought when planning treatments is to treat as much of the target as we can while sparing everything else. It’s a small field but an interesting one.

[@CargodHera]

AGES ago (and I mean AGES) my dad got esophageal cancer when I was 4 yrs old. He had very aggressive surgery done at Mt Sinai hospital in New York, removing quite a lot of muscle tissue, his entire windpipe, his voice box, and vocal chords. But he didn't have to have Chemo. He then underwent radiation treatments and lived cancer free until the age of 87, so I have a lot of confidence in your radiation therapy, Hank. You're easily my favorite person on the internet and I love that you are sharing this journey with people and continuing to teach us all more about science. Live love and prosper, my young friend! Love to you from a Nerdfighter Granny =-)

[@diyeana]

I hope we can all be this positive when faced with life's challenges. Especially Dakota.

[@ARavingLobster]

Having a cancer treatment, even just a part of it, come down to "You sit there for 8mins and then go get McDonalds" fills me with so much joy and hope for the future. You saying that sentence made my day! :D

[@JulieAiken]

The exquisite artist Ren has been struggling with severe chronic health issues for well over a decade, and in a video today he said almost the same thing as "Life gave me cancer and Dakota's sushi." Except he has Lyme disease and psychosis and I don't think he lives near enough to Dakota to get her sushi by mistake. But, anyway, my favorite youtube creators have waxed philosophical today, and the world is a better place for it. Love to you Hank. Thank you for all you do that makes the world a better place.

[@silversam]

Been a big fan of your enthusiasm for literally everything. The way you have used this ordeal as yet another opportunity to teach has been friggin amazing. When you started, I literally laughed - not at you because anything about it is funny, but at myself because I didn't see it coming 😆 And today I learned that radiation is like a lot of other things; moderation is key.

[@catherinecase1142]

I don’t eat McDonald’s all that often, but I *always* eat it on days when I have a big doctor’s appointment. It is the best and only choice in my opinion! Hope radiation continues to feel like nothing and works exactly as intended ❤️

[@ps.2]

Before or after they do a blood draw to check your lipid levels? Probably want to wait til after.

[@masonnationfan]

My dad just finished his 2nd week of radiation therapy for prostate cancer and he keeps saying he feels fine when I ask him every 2 minutes. Hopefully both of you will have very fine absolutely unremarkable treatments. ❤

[@HexerPsy]

Your dad should be - typically prostate patients get a bit fatigued, irritated bowels and bladder. Can be really annoying to wake up multiple times in the night but nothing comes out - or its painful. These side effects tend to show up starting week 2-3, and are typically at their worst by the end of the treatment. But some are lucky and dont really experience side effects. Best of luck!

[@breitbartsimpson4940]

I work with the cancer center over here in Bozeman, the adjustable shutter on the CT treatment machine is Called the leaves! It's super cool to watch and im glad you brought it up! For some trouble areas one of our oncologists hand draws the borders and then smelts a metal blocked made out of a bunch of specific metals to block the radiation. It's all so crazy and cool! Ps keep on rockin!

[@haramanggapuja]

Hearing this from the patient’s side is amazing, after having heard how this all works - the statistical, cellular, organic & chemo aspects - is more than enlightening. I have a dear friend who works in chemo development & the things he has talked about, like your descriptions & discussion of the therapies, make me so glad I was raised with a nominally science-based background. Keep on keeping on, amigo. We need science folks like you on this green planet of the clocks!

[@anna._olsen_]

I’m so glad that chemo went well for you, Hank. Here’s to an easy bout with radiation! Happy sushi eating!!!

[@davidgoldrock7264]

"life gave me cancer, and Dakota's sushi" ~ Hank Green (2023)

[@Amanda-lx7lm]

I’m an engineer at a company that makes devices to measure radiotherapy beams before patients get treated. The whole point is to try to make it as safe as possible for patients, and the bar is constantly getting raised with new methods and technology. I’m so thankful for John sharing his experience with radiation and getting to see it from his lens.

[@Wysperfauna]

I loved the people at my radiation treatment center. Ended up having to see them for almost a year because I had two cancer diagnosis, one after the other. One gal said "I know you wanted to see us again, but there are better ways to do it."

[@ToppyTree]

When life gives you Dakota's sushi, try not to die of radiation poisoning as they say

[@Iakeamus]

A friend of mine just got a job maintaining these linear accelerators, and hearing about how they work is fascinating!

[@Biga101011]

They are very interesting. And the service engineers are the unsung heroes keeping everything running!

[@sugarandchaos]

The questions we all want to know the answer to: 1. When do the superpowers kick in? 2. What will be your superhero name? 3. To cape or not to cape? Seriously though, glad to hear it's all going well. 🎉

[@santoven]

Continued prayers for a full recovery. The modern standard of care is incredible, as my wife, a lung cancer survivor from 8 years ago, can attest. God bless you with His healing and strength.

[@mrwhirly0358]

This is the first time I’ve heard the sentence “I was on the wrong side of town” end with “so I ordered Boba” 😂😂

[@mrasnick3314]

I’m laughing and crying at the same time. My older brother is up at Sloan Kettering being treated for stage 3 cancer after getting diagnosed two weeks ago. This is both scary and reassuring. ❤

[@luizasouto5434]

My mom is the strongest person I know and when she did radiation treatment she used to tell me "I´m gonna go get my radio." and I don´t know if that was intentional or not but somehow it always made me think she was going to go get a radio. Like a boombox. I mean, I knew what it was of course, but words have so much weight that I didn´t stop to think that she was going to get radiation treatment. The fact she made it seem like it was no big deal helped too. Anyway, nowadays, I feel like shit because I probably was nowhere as kind to her then as I should Have been. To all the humans out there like my mom, YOU ARE DOING GREAT!

[@MKPiatkowski]

My dad did the same underplaying and when I did radiation I really wish I had been more understanding at the time. However, by not telling us what was going on, they made it hard for us to understand that it was a big deal. Please forgive yourself.

[@Zeyev]

Thank you for a wonderful - and accurate - description of lying down while the machine is doing whatever it does. Georgetown University's hospital uses the same device. My first therapy lasted about 5 weeks and was generalized, probably giving me bladder cancer as a side "benefit." My second therapy was focused on a particular lymph node and was only one week. They gave me pinpoint tattoos to guide the focus of the machine. I lived close to the hospital so I walked back and forth and my radiation oncologist LOVED the idea that I was exercising. It helps prevent some of the fatigue that patients usually get. I had been concerned that I would feel something and some people said that I would get burns on my skin but neither of those happened. The staff was great and I brought pastries for them after it was all over. Oh, one of my neighbors here in California worked on developing that machine. How about that!

[@earth_tones22]

My dad had chemo and radiation for his brain cancer. Thank you for sharing your journey and experiences, I was always curious about what it was like for him. ❤

[@crains8087]

I'm sorry you have cancer, but I am so glad to see you talk about the radiation experience. I found it so cool! The most interesting part of cancer treatment. I assume you have tattoos? My radiation therapy wasn't silent. There were buzzes and clicks. But it is very surreal and weird to be in this machine that moves around you like a robot doctor. 😄😄😄😄

[@Candoran2]

He has at least one: kzbin.info/www/bejne/o6mkk59mZ9SYh6c

[@agerardi125]

There's a tik tok of Hank showing John a triangle tattoo on his arm, so he has at least one.

[@queenofgreen83]

It's so fascinating to see you going through this after I so recently did (DA-R-EPOCH chemo Aug-Nov 2022), and also to see the differences between treating Hodgkin and Non-Hodgkin lymhomas. I had PMBCL lymphoma, and thankfully I didn't end up needing radiation therapy, but the chemo regimen I did required 5 days of infusions each cycle, with 4 days of 24-hr drip via a portable pump each time. Super intense, but thankfully I'm over halfway through my first year of remission.

[@Advil1024]

I'm constantly amazed by the energy you have while explaining what you've been going through week after week. It gives me hope for others that have to do the same.