What to expect from radiotherapy for testicular cancer

Your team uses examination and imaging to plan the target area, often including lymph nodes in the abdomen. You may receive positioning instructions so the same region is treated at every visit. During treatment, you lie still while the machine delivers radiation; the beam is not felt, and treatment does not make you radioactive.

Some people develop nausea, looser bowel movements, abdominal discomfort, or reduced appetite. Tiredness can build over the course of treatment. Skin over the treated area may become dry or darker. Your clinicians will explain how the plan fits with surgery, chemotherapy, fertility care, and follow-up.

Ask whether you should attend with a full or empty bladder and follow the instructions consistently. Tell the team about medicines, bowel conditions, previous radiation, and fertility concerns before treatment starts. Eat and drink according to the plan; if nausea or appetite loss begins, ask about small meals and prescribed anti-sickness medicine.

Rest when needed, take gentle walks if comfortable, and record symptoms so patterns are easy to discuss. Use only approved skin products and avoid rubbing or heat over the treated area. Ask for help early if fatigue affects work, transport, or personal care.

Contact your team for persistent vomiting, worsening diarrhoea, inability to keep fluids down, severe abdominal pain, or skin that becomes broken or increasingly sore. Seek urgent help for fainting, confusion, severe weakness, heavy bleeding, or a high temperature with feeling very unwell. Keep the out-of-hours contact number available.

Ask which lymph-node areas are included, what food and drink instructions apply, and how nausea or bowel changes will be treated. Ask how radiotherapy may interact with other treatment, whether fertility preservation should be discussed before treatment, and what follow-up checks are planned.