For the past 5 days I have been confined to a hospital room for radioactive iodine (radioiodine) ablation therapy as part of my papillary thyroid cancer treatment. Here’s what I wish I brought with me, what worked and what could have been left behind.
Please note I am not a medical professional and this is not medical advice. Please seek advice from your treating doctor.
What I wish I packed/prepared
- Salty snacks and a bag of apples
Some of the hospital food was very unappealing and salty snacks are great when you’re drinking lots of water. - A yoga mat
I was a bit jealous of my roommate lying outside and reading a book on her mat. - A loofah
My skin was so dry during the treatment, I dreamt about loofahs! - A haircut
Long pandemic hair wasn’t that easy to manage in hospital. A short bob would have been simpler.
What I’m glad I packed/prepared
- A dental cleaning 1 week prior
- Strict adherence to the low-iodine diet (LID) for 2 weeks prior with the help of lidlifecommunity.org
- A full change of (old) clothes for each day including socks and one jumper
- Slippers, shower thongs and outdoor shoes
- A bag that could be thrown in the washing machine
- Books
- An old laptop, phone, kindle, all the cables and a 3 port usb charger
- Earphones so I didn’t disturb my roommate
- An FFP2 face mask to change each day
- A toothbrush, tooth paste, dental floss, hair brush, tooth mousse, soap, shampoo/conditioner, deodorant and moisturizer that were nearing end of life so I could leave them behind in the radioactive waste bin
- Hair elastics
- Dietary fibre and my T4 medication
- Rubbish bags to store my worn clothes
- A notebook and pen
- Sour lollies
- 1 form of identification, 1 bank card, 1 train ticket and a very old wallet
- Pads and nappy bags to place them in before discarding them
- Meals for the week for my husband and toddler to make it a little easier on them
- A small gift each day for my toddler so he could count the days until my return
What could have stayed behind
- Water colour pencils and paper
I was so tired and not particularly motivated, so didn’t spend more than 15mins on this during the entire 5 day stay. Now they need to be packed away for 3 months or so. - Jewellery (including my wedding ring)
To reduce contamination this could all have stayed behind with my handbag and purse. - Tea bags
There was nowhere to store the milk and the kitchen was unable to provide any, so I didn’t end up using many of the tea bags and threw them out at the end of the stay. - Pyjamas
The hospital provided a clean nightgown each day.
That’s what helped me, and I hope it helps you too! Best of luck for your treatment.
