Completing Radiotherapy Treatment

Completing Radiotherapy Treatment

Follow-up Appointments

You may not always have an appointment with the oncology team and can be followed up by surgical teams and/or other individuals e.g. Clinical nurse specialists.

Your consultant will inform you when/if they will see you again.

Please contact your consultant’s secretary or nurse specialist if you do not receive any appointment to be followed up within a month of completing radiotherapy. 

Telephone numbers can be found on clinical letters or via the hospital switchboard, 01905 763333.

Side Effects

Please refer to your patient information and consent form for more information on managing side effects from treatment. 

• Short-term side effects occur during treatment and for a few weeks after.  They may become worse after treatment, before starting to improve. 
• Long-term side effects can occur months or years later.

Who to Contact

For help and advice managing side effects of treatment please contact the Macmillan Radiotherapy Review Radiographers and leave a message:

Macmillan Radiotherapy Review Radiographers: 01905 761420, Monday – Friday 8.45am – 5pm

If you completed radiotherapy in the last 8 weeks and you feel unwell and need help, then contact the Acute Oncology Service:

Acute Oncology Service (24-hour): 01905 760158

When leaving a message, please ensure you speak clearly and leave your name, date of birth and/or NHS number and telephone number. 

Contact your GP if you feel unwell and need help and your treatment finished more than 8 weeks ago.  In the event of a medical emergency e.g. Chest pain, short of breath, you must call 999 and ask for an ambulance.

Please do not call the Acute Oncology Service or Macmillan radiographers with follow up appointment queries.

After Your Radiotherapy:

Patient Experience

We know that being admitted to hospital can bea difficult and unsettling time for you and your loved ones. If you have any questions or concerns, please do speak with a member of staff on the ward or in the relevant department who will do their best to answer your questions and reassure you. 

Feedback

Feedback is really important and useful to us – it can tell us where we are working well and where improvements can be made. There are lots of ways you can share your experience with us including completing our Friends and Family Test – cards are available and can be posted on all wards, departments and clinics at our hospitals. We value your comments and feedback and thank you for taking the time to share this with us.

Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS)

If you have any concerns or questions about your care, we advise you to talk with the nurse in charge or the department manager in the first instance as they are best placed to answer any questions or resolve concerns quickly. If the relevant member of staff is unable to help resolve your concern, you can contact the PALS Team. We offer informal help, advice or support about any aspect of hospital services & experiences.

Our PALS team will liaise with the various departments in our hospitals on your behalf, if you feel unable to do so, to resolve your problems and where appropriate refer to outside help.

If you are still unhappy you can contact the Complaints Department, who can investigate your concerns. You can make a complaint orally, electronically or in writing and we can advise and guide you through the complaints procedure.

How to contact PALS:

Telephone Patient Services: 0300 123 1732 or via email at: [email protected]

Opening times:

The PALS telephone lines are open Monday to Friday from 8.30am to 4.00pm. Please be aware that you may need to leave a voicemail message, but we aim to return your call within one working day.

If you are unable to understand this leaflet, please communicate with a member of staff.  

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