Taking Road Trips with Optune GioTM
By: Lynn and Larry, Optune Gio Ambassadors
Alternative travel plans
In light of the COVID-19 outbreak, air travel was out of the question for us. So, my wife and I had to come up with an alternative plan. For a while, we didn’t feel comfortable staying in hotels or eating in restaurants, so a road trip would be a challenge—that is, until we decided to rent a small RV to travel to Michigan. That way we would have everything we needed with us. We packed up our clothing, our food, and the Optune Gio supplies and camped our way from suburban Philadelphia to suburban Detroit in about 10 days. We reserved campsites in advance to make sure we could connect to electricity.
Scoping out the necessities
When choosing the RV, it was important to check what type of power it had, how many outlets there were in the vehicle, and where it would be comfortable for Lynn to sleep with Optune Gio. We also checked where the battery charger would be plugged in and where the wall outlet would be. We took all the batteries we had, the battery charger, and enough arrays for as many changes we thought we would need plus some extra. MyNovocure™, Novocure’s support program, will send any supplies that are needed for travel. We made sure we had ample space to change the arrays inside the RV.
In February 2022, we planned a much longer road trip—from suburban Philadelphia to Key West and back—for 23 days. We took this trip by car because, by then, we were more comfortable staying in hotels. Still not comfortable eating indoors at restaurants, we had to pack our food again. We reserved hotels ahead of time in several cities along the way, making sure that each place we stayed in would have a refrigerator and a microwave. We also had to make sure the electric outlets were near the bed so Optune Gio could be plugged in overnight. It was key for us to check out the space ahead of time to see if it was comfortable enough for array changes. Because of all the supplies we had to carry in and out at each stop, we stayed at each hotel for at least two nights. We planned our stays to be in areas that we wanted to explore during the day, so the two-night stays made that more convenient as well.
Planning and preparation
When taking a road trip, it’s very important to plan ahead. Be sure to have enough batteries, arrays, and any other supplies you need. Make sure you can connect to electricity wherever you stop, so that you can recharge batteries. When we travel, we like to drive only about five hours per day so we aren’t totally exhausted by the evening.
When we take shorter day trips, we make sure to have several charged batteries with us in the car. The fully charged batteries last about two to three hours so the distance we are driving determines how many we take with us for the day. In fact, we always keep at least one charged battery in the car in case of emergency, even if we are staying close to home. Lynn does not take extra breaks from Optune Gio because we are traveling. We schedule array changes around the activities that we do, such as swimming or boating. Our philosophy is simple—when Lynn uses the device, it’s working and when it’s off, it’s not.
With good planning, road trips are very doable with Optune Gio. Just don’t forget your shower cap!
Happy travels!