Skin Care: Dealing With the Side Effects of Radiation

A lot of survivors tell us that radiation as part of cancer treatment can have really harsh effects on the skin. A lot of people complain that their skin is bright red, swollen, dry, tight, itchy, blistered or flaky … or any combination of those symptoms. And on top of the trauma of dealing with treatment, these side effects can be a real inconvenience. Survivor Cynthia Besteman decided to do something about that.

Cynthia, a seven-year breast cancer survivor, began to create her own skin creams during treatment because she was worried about the ingredients in the creams she was given by doctors. She decided to create a line of products called Violets are Blue. “I wanted to create something for women to get them through treatment,” Cynthia says. “And then at my follow-up appointment with my radio oncologist, she noticed that my skin held up really well during treatment, and asked what I did. I told her about products that I was making and she said, ‘I would love to give people here more natural products to use because it works better.'”