Experience with Cavilon - medical

This is technical, only of interest for those wanting to use such protection.

Pleass see my next post on the risks Jan and I face in the UK in daring to use a privately funded barrier film.

Cavilon is a 3M spray on plastic film that forms a very thin breathable protective skin over one's real skin. Developed to protect colostomies from irritation from leakages, we used it very successfully to protect skin from radiotherapy damage. Radiation "drys" the skin, the NHS try to protect skin by moisturising cream. Cavilon works in the opposite way, by slowing the skins "moisture" from escaping. It also acts as a barrier to abrasion damage from skin rubbing on skin, so often caused by the NHS recommendation that one does not wear a bra during treatment.

The idea is complementary to NHS best practice, but it replaces the use of moisturising cream. Moisturising cream is the standard NHS recommendation, known as Sorbolene in the documented trials. Cavilon cannot be used with moisturising cream, as that would stop Cavilon adhering to the skin.

It seems to be almost unheard of amongst Jan's breast cancer specialists, though obviously amongst staff with colostomy experience it is well known. Two specialists told us not to use it, most were ambivalent, one suggested it had been seen before at UCH.

It is available on ebay. Jan refused to use products from such a quack source, so I ordered it from the local pharmacist who got me a bottle within 6 hours. The pharmacist had not heard of Cavilon, and had to look it up in their catalogue. I told her it was for my colostomy! Over 7 weeks we will have used three 28 mil pump spray bottles, each cost about £11.50 retail. It is also known as "No sting barrier film".

We sprayed on a thin film every third day after washing. Jan washed every day, but tried to not wash off the film. Results were good, Jan got mild erythema after 18 days. This consists of two red patches looking like flea bites, and red soreness under the breast where it touches the abdomen, and would normally be protected by a bra. Jan had 15 days whole breast irradiation by "photons" followed by 5 days boost using using electrons. Cavilon is transparent to both.

We had no help from medical staff in how to use it, so we used common sense. I worried about protecting the breast, and gave no thought to how most Xrays (decribed by the NHS as photons) would travel straight through the body and exit, many in the armpit. So we applied no protection to the armpit, which therefore showed greater skin tanning than her breast! I was unaware how high up the neck the radiation would reach, so this was less protected and got the "flea bite" like patches. We let the layers of Cavilon build up over time, so eventually it looked like dirty pealing skin, and could be one reason why one nurse described Jan's breast as looking pink. But this was Cavilon, not a skin reaction.

A benefit for us is that it gave us something to jointly control in Jan's treatment.

In spite of our successful use I hesitate to recommend Cavilon for these reasons:

• difficult to apply, it needed a second person to spray Jan as her treated arm was extended over her head and her other hand held the breast skin taught during application.
• it took a long time to dry, even in our summer time. We started by leaving for 5 mins, but found Jan had to lie still for 15 mins, else the film on the breast stuck like superglue to her abdomen as she stood up.
• it was more difficult to physically see that one had covered the entire breast as the film is almost invisible immediately after application
• 3M now have a newer product named Cavilon moisturising cream, which seems more geared to breast protection. We had to use what we knew at the time.
• it is not a cure all, and in the Wollongong University trials only cut adverse skin reactions by 33%
  

Further details are in earlier posts, please search the blog if neeed.