Long Term effects of whole brain radiation
My mom had whole brain radiation in March as a result of her sclc metastasis to her brain. At first cognitively she was ok, but recently she can’t remember anything and will ask the same question multiple times. There are days that she is not engaged. Any ideas or support would be appreciated.
Unfortunately, radiation to the brain can have side effects that show up from 6 months to many years after treatment ends. I would suggest having a discussion with your Mom's doctor to see if anything (supplements, prescription, etc) can be done to help. I hope others with experience in this area join in on the discussion with suggestions. Please follow up with us anytime, we are here for you both. Warmly, Alisa, LungCancer.net Team Thank you for your response.
Hi
. As Alisa said, the effects of brain metastasis and the treatments can be unpredictable and it is important to work with the medical team on best ways to treat and stimulate the brain. I do want to stress that the brain (and people) can be quite resilient. Our contributor Christine had brain metastasis and radiation. She wrote here about resilience: https://lungcancer.net/living/staying-resilient. Please know that hope is real. This community is here for both you and your mother. Best, Richard (LungCancer.net Team) 
So sorry to hear of your mom's side effects. My mom had similar reactions and it's just hard to see and process. I agree with Alisa, check with the doctor and have a transparent conversation. Also, try your own method of taking out old photos that your mom loved and try to bring up conversations to see if she remembered that time in the past. Wishing you and her the very best!
