Inside the Vault: What You’re About to See

May 30, 2026

When I decided to document this 39-session journey for MY VIEW, I wanted to do it right — pull back the curtain and show family, friends, and anyone else facing this road exactly what happens in that room every afternoon. People hear “radiation therapy” and their imaginations can take them to some dark places. The reality is a lot more ordinary than that, and I wanted to show it.

Getting there wasn’t entirely straightforward. The Singing River legal department’s first answer was a firm no — liability concerns, the usual. Frankly, I thought it was a little ridiculous, but that’s American healthcare for you. After some back and forth, Dr. Greenfield stepped in with a suggestion that management accepted: a full simulation. The team stayed in the vault, the machine ran through its complete routine exactly as it does during a real session — the only difference was that the radiation beam was never activated. What you see in the video is precisely what happens every day. You’ll catch a glimpse or two of the team on the right side of the frame; I could edit them out, but I kind of like that they’re there.

The machine itself is a Varian Trilogy Linear Accelerator. Before it does anything else, it scans me right there on the table using built-in imaging to pinpoint the exact position of my prostate — accounting for the fact that things shift around inside you from day to day. Once it has confirmed everything is where it should be, the gantry rotates around the table and delivers precisely shaped radiation beams to the target while protecting the surrounding tissue as much as possible.

As for the setup — it’s exactly what it looks like. You lie flat on the table, shirt up, slacks down, and the team places a small towel over your midsection. Your bare side is visible throughout the process, and there’s no getting around that. It’s a completely professional, clinical environment, but let’s be honest: making my film debut on MY VIEW at 74, semi-naked on a carbon fiber table, was not something I had penciled into retirement. If nothing else, I hope it gives the next guy a realistic picture of what to expect — and maybe a small laugh at my expense.

What you’re about to see is a simulation — a walkthrough of my actual radiation treatment, graciously conducted by the team I see every weekday morning.

Bridget, Matt, Selina, and Travis move twenty or more patients through that room every day, fifteen to twenty minutes apart. You’d think that kind of pace would turn it into an assembly line. It doesn’t. Somehow, every single session, they make it feel personal.

I’m fourteen days in. I wanted you to see what I see.

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