For those of you who do travel radiation therapy, what’s it like? Is it worth it?
I’m also curious how you found your first assignment, what travel agencies you’d recommend, and how you can tell if a job posting or recruiter is legitimate. Any advice or things you wish you knew before would be greatly appreciated!
Anyone undergo this treatment? Curious how your journey has been. I start “mapping” this week and should be done with five treatments within a week or so. I’m being treated at Henry Ford Cancer Center out of Detroit.
I am currently attending a JRCERT-accredited program in a rural area and want to move back home after graduation. Will I have any issues transitioning to work in large hospital systems in big cities like New York or California as a new graduate?
I’m a bit concerned that the technology I’m exposed to during clinicals may not be as advanced as what big city hospitals use. I’m wondering how steep the learning curve usually is for new grads in this situation.
Any advice would be appreciated.
I’m an X-ray technologist. Today I had AP and lateral X-rays of my foot, but I forgot to remove my dosimeter. I was wearing a lead apron, and the dosimeter was partially covered by it. Will it register a high dose? Could this be a problem or even lead to me being removed from radiation work? Has anyone experienced this?
Not a doctor by the way, but I am doctor adjacent. From my understanding, fiducials are commonly placed prior to RT in many parts of the body that are relatively immobile, like the prostate, but they aren't always placed in the mobile anatomy like the lungs. Wouldn't fiducial markers have more benefit in anatomy that moves a lot... like the lungs? I know a lot of the LINAC manufacturers claim that they aren't needed in the lung with the latest technology, but I've heard several clinicians say the opposite too and that without fiducials, you cannot see the target lesion intrafractionally, which I agree with when those folks show me images. I'm just trying to make sense of this. Is it because placing the fiducials in the lung require it to be done in another procedure, like in IR or in a nav bronch by a pulmonologist? Help me understand.
So I took my ARRT registry a couple days ago and I got a 75. I’m feeling kind of bummed because I heard it could drop 😭.
Idk how I will survive waiting these 10 days to find out my official score. Has anyone ever had their score drop below a 75?
I’m 26 years old and work full-time as a Patient Care Tech at a hospital in New Jersey making $18.50/hour. My schedule is Monday through Friday, 11:00 AM–7:30 PM.
My plan is to start my prereqs at community college this fall and eventually transfer into a radiography program. Lately, though, I’ve been feeling overwhelmed. I’ve never been the strongest student academically, and knowing how competitive these programs are has me questioning whether I’m capable of doing it.
Financially, I don’t qualify for much aid because I “make too much,” but I still feel like I’m barely getting ahead. I’ve been saving what I can, but the thought of paying for school while working full-time is stressful.
For those of you who have been in my shoes:
How many classes did you take while working full-time?
Were you able to keep working through your prereqs?
Did you ever feel like you weren’t smart enough, and if so, how did you get past it?
I guess I’m just looking for some honest advice or motivation from people who have already gone through this. Right now it feels like a really long road, and I’d appreciate hearing how you made it through.
Thanks in advance.
Hello, I am an air force veteran and 24. I have already completed most of the prerequisites. I have couple left. I have a bachelor's degree that is unrelated. I lately have been extremely worried about whether or not I'll be accepted into the program at the school I'm looking at. I just don't like the idea of me using my GI bill to do these prerequisites and I get rejected once I apply. I already doing observation hours. Is my military service a plus?
(For comtext: I am 14F) My mom 50 and was diagnosed with a brain tumor very close to her eye about a month ago. She is currently doing daily radiation therapy for it. She says she's tired and in pain, which I completely understand and I've been trying to help as much as I can, but I am also chronically ill (doctors aren't sure what illness exactly) and have ADHD, so sometime I forget to do a tiny thing and then she just yells at me while I apologize profusely. Just recently, I brought in a huge amazon box (it wasn't too heavy) and had to lift it with one arm on the side and one on the bottom while it was digging into my shoulder. When I told her about it, (I wasn't complaining, just telling her what happened) she said I need to exercise, walking won't cut it. I tried to tell her that I do exercise, but I don't like to do it in front of people. No matter what I say, whenever I do something she thinks is wrong, she just yells at me. She claims she is "losing her filter". Is this a real thing? It really hurts when she yells at me and explodes about little things. Again, I'm not trying to complain. I just want to know if this is real and maybe how I can help de-escalate these things.
Hey everyone. New grad here who just started working and am looking for some perspective.
What was it look for you when you first graduated? How would you say your onboarding and training went? How long did it take you to start feeling confident and not in a low state of fight or flight?
I'd say I'm not struggling per se but am definitely feeling very green and a little burnt out on feeling that way if im being honest. I know everyone has to earn their stripes so to speak, just looking for perspective on when you started to feel comfortable. I should also add that I am on a new machine and EMR.
Thanks in advance.
I am the only one I’ve ever met to suggest that the Ark of the Covenant in the Bible and in Judaism was filled with radioactive, meteoric slabs. I wonder if this is why Moses’ face shone when coming down from the mountain, why the Ark killed people from opposing camps (they did not respect it and handle it properly), why the guy who was not careful when carrying it died instantly (did the lid slip, exposing him to huge amounts of radiation?), and why High Priests that supposedly were evil or not pure (maybe they opened or sat on The Mercy Seat?) needed to be dragged out? Maybe radiation can explain the red cord of the sacrificial lamb turning white on the SpDay of Atonement? Maybe why Jesus, also a high priest (THE High Priest, actually) could heal others and why other priests could heal others? Maybe this is why Jesus Christ brought others to life, just like how He did, and why the Shroud of Turin seems like it was exposed to radiation bursts. Lemme know your thoughts! And if you ever see a post from someone on YT about it, it’s definitely me. No one has ever talked about this before.
I passed my board exam on the 2nd try!! Honestly, the 2nd test was way harder. Midway through the exam, I was sure I had failed it. The first exam was easier, but I second- guessed myself and ended up changing answers. Missed it by 1 pt the first time. I’m so glad I don’t need to stress about it anymore. I was supposed to start my 1st job June 22, but I was so glad they just moved my start date to July 20. Yeah me!!
Hello!
I recently got accepted to my radiation therapy program and I wanted to know if anyone had any advice on how to prepare? How you personally prepared before you started that you felt helped/didn’t help? Materials that you found helpful? Study habits? Things you cut out before you started? Advice on your clinical experience?
Thank you!!
For those who graduated from a radiation therapy program in May, when did you take the ARRT registry exam, and when did you start applying for jobs?
Did you apply before taking the exam or wait until you passed the registry? I'm just trying to get an idea of what the typical timeline looks like. TIA!
I’m looking for advice from radiation therapists, students, and anyone who has gone through a radiation therapy program.
Background:
● 32-year-old female
● BS in Chemistry
● Currently work in a refinery laboratory
● About 6 years of lab and quality experience
● Currently make around $130k/year (some years closer to $140k with overtime)
My biggest issue is my schedule. I currently work rotating 12-hour shifts that include nights, weekends, holidays, and constant sleep schedule changes. The pay is good, but I’m not sure it’s sustainable long-term.
I’ve been looking into radiation therapy because it seems to offer:
● Better work-life balance
● More predictable schedules
● Good earning potential
● A pathway into dosimetry later on
My concerns:
● I would likely have to leave a six-figure income to go back to school full-time.
● Clinicals seem difficult to manage as a single parent.
● I would probably be starting over at 34 by the time I finished.
● I’m trying to figure out whether the long-term benefits justify the sacrifice.
Questions:
1. If you could do it again, would you still choose radiation therapy?
2. What does a typical day actually look like?
3. What is a realistic salary for a new graduate and for someone with experience?
4. How difficult was the program and clinical portion?
5. Is the job market good right now?
6. How stressful is the job compared to what people expect?
7. How common are PRN, part-time, or flexible positions?
8. For those who became dosimetrists, was the transition worth it?
9. If you were already making $130k+ but working rotating nights and weekends, would you leave that job to pursue radiation therapy?
I’m trying to determine whether I’m attracted to the profession itself or just attracted to the idea of a better schedule and quality of life.
Any honest feedback is appreciated.
Hi everyone,
I am completely new to the healthcare field and come from a totally different professional background. I live in Orange County, California, and I am interested in becoming a Radiation Therapist.
My goals are:
I would really appreciate advice from anyone who has gone through this process, especially career changers, working parents, or students in Southern California.
Could you please share:
Thank you for your help. I am just starting my research and would love to learn from your experience.
Just curious! Has anyone ever done JPU radiation therapy program before and graduated? How was the experience? Can you provide some insight? Or if anyone heard things about their program? Would love to hear.
Free-trial IGRT image-matching simulator for teaching — feedback welcome
Built a browser-based trainer for IGRT registration practice — CBCT 6DOF on real CT volumes (fusion, W/L, contours, tolerance-graded residual error) and 2D/2D portal-to-DRR including a kV fiducial case. Aimed at students/residents getting reps before the console. It’s a paid sim with a free trial; all data is fictional, educational use only. I’d value a clinical gut-check on realism and which cases matter most for teaching — rtimagematch.com.
I'm a propsective dosimetry student and I've been having trouble getting shadowing opportunities (located in SoCal). I've tried cold-messaging about 20 people in my area on Linkedin, and I was able to get one response and I got one day set up for shadowing (which I am super grateful for), but unfortunately I still need 40 minimum (applying to UW Lacrosse), and I'm hoping for 80 hours total.
I've Googled radiation oncology clinics in my city and I dropped by 8 of them and handed them my resume and cover letter with contact information, but no response :(
Does anyone have any advice or recommendations for something else I could try?
If there's any dosimetrists on this subreddit willing to let me shadow, feel free to DM me or leave a comment and maybe we could set something up! I'm willing to travel further out if needed!
