I'll be traveling to Hamburg for Radiation Therapy by Dr. S in one week. Wish me luck! I'm feeling a bit nervous about the experience, mainly because I've never traveled to Europe, don't speak anything but English, will have to rely on public transportation, etc. I have a universal electrical outlet converter, money belt, passport, etc. Hopefully things will go well.

Had a couple of questions. For those that state RT failed for them, how did it fail? Did the existing nodes/cords still remain active or did new nodes/cords form shortly after treatment? My understanding is that RT mostly kills existing nodes (and perhaps cords), but in no way prevents new nodes from forming. If you're in a very aggressive state, it seems possible that new nodes could easily pop up anytime after RT.

Has anyone ever had RT twice on the same hand, but on different parts of the hand? I have no involvement of the fingers, or perhaps a very weak cord in my pinky. I would like to think that after treating my palms, I might be able to treat my fingers later if I ever get nodes there.

I'm trying to decide if my pinky has a cord in it. It feels a little different than the other fingers, but not sure. No contraction, just a slightly taught lineation when I bend the finger beyond straight. Thoughts?

I have 5 nodes in my left hand, 4 directly over the mip joint and one further back; and two in the right, both directly over mip joints. I'm curious why the almost perfectly consistent placement over the mip joints. They vary in placement only very slightly with each shifted fingerwards or wristwards.

I have been to Hamburg twice for short visits and speak not a word (barely) of German. No worries. No real need for a money belt or other special precautions. You are far less likely to encounter any type of crime than back home in the states (I'm assuming that's where you're from - as am I). Getting around on mass transit is easy once you've figured out the ticket purchase machines. If you get stuck, a helpful English-speaking local is liable to come along and make sure to help. Transit services are clean, efficient, and pleasant. Food and sightseeing opportunities are abundant. People are generally quite friendly. About the only negative is that the city tends to be gray weather-wise. So what?

Best of luck,

I'm staying at Leonard Hotel Hamburg Airport which is 1.4 miles from the clinic. For some reason, I'm not particularly in the mood for extensive sightseeing. I plan to treat the trip as a work week for my job, spending a full day each day studying math and physics, something I enjoy quite a bit. Work has been so hectic lately that doing some relaxing education will be very satisfying.

You will have a good experience. I have been to Hamburg several times, and to the Strahlenzentrum once. I enjoy taking the train into the center to eat and walk around. You will have a lot of time, so you might as well enjoy.

The only bad experience I had in Hamburg was a very grouchy taxi driver from the Hamburg airport to a hotel right by the airport. Taxi drivers wait in a queue at the airport for a couple of hours, and when they finally get their turn they expect a big fare into the city, not a six euro fare to an airport hotel. The airport Marriott Courtyard offers a shuttle, which can solve that problem for their guests.