9 days after end of treatment, mouth and throat questions

Ditto on the food tube. You decide when you are ready. My radiation oncologist was a nag about it. But I kept mine till I was comfortable with my eating.

Thank you

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It is amazing to see that other cancer patients have same symptoms. I am still getting treatments. I had one heck of a time. But I never lost sense of taste or smell. I am going through a bad time right now with excessive saliva. It is embarrassing to drool The doctor in Rochester ordered some patches for me Stay on for 3 days and then put another one on. It's the same as what you get to combat sea sickness. I have tongue cancer so I am working on my tongue, mouth and swallowing. It is not the most enjoyable deal . I said I never asked for cancer and now I have to work harder to improve. The patch they gave me is seeming to make the saliva less embarrassing, but patch does make me tired So I am hoping someone will see this and share some ideas with me. Otherwise I feel really good. Have been reading a lot of books. Getting more active. I was really sick. Am amazed they have medicine available to make this cancer go away. So far. So good,! Thank you for sharing. Pat Rosenberg.

Good luck mytime62
I am about 8 months out of treatment Still having treatments every weeks. Have had a couple pet CT scans and cancer is going away. I just have that saliva problem. I just got some patches, like what they use for sea sickness. These seem to be helping. I have less drooling. That is my main irritating problem. And learning how to talk again. At least I don't get a lot of phones. All my friends know I can't talk very well but I am improving.
Good luck to you and all the rest of us cancer patients. I hope these patches work. God Bless You!

I am 20 weeks post treatment. The pain in my mouth peaked at 8 weeks after, which was 6 weeks longer than I was told would happen. I could eat only very slippery, bland food for about 12 weeks, and that was using “magic mouthwash” to temporarily ease the pain. Drinking water felt like razor blades going down my throat. Gradually in the last 8 weeks I have been able to tolerate more foods, although nothing that’s rough or spicy. I’ve also regained my energy which was very low. I still have very little saliva and taste, although I can taste a bit better. The constant dry mouth is annoying. I can’t go longer than a few minutes without some water, otherwise my mouth quickly becomes dry and painful. I developed lymphedema on my neck about six weeks ago. My neck quickly became swollen. Looked like I was a turkey with a gobbler neck. I do some head and shoulder exercises which has reduced the swelling to about 1/3 of what it was. I have an appointment this week to assess my lymphedema and develop a treatment plan. Seems everyone’s timeline to recover is different. The key is to keep pushing the boundaries, especially with what you can tolerate eating and drinking. It will get better with time - don’t get frustrated if it takes longer than projected.

It will get SOOOO much better. My husband’s lack of taste and severe dry mouth has improved by about 95%! He’s now 14 months out from end of treatments. His taste has come back with a vengeance 😂! Our som says he’s a super-taster now.
We were doubtful that he would recover, but he did. You will too! Hang in there, the trip is almost over💕👏🏻

Hey, thanks for all the feedback. Things continue to improve slowly. One person at the Cancer Center thinks I have a bit of Lymphedema in my neck, I think it's just a wattle from losing weight. Need a second opinion on that 🙂 Mucus slightly decreasing, still miss that beloved saliva. Going to try some yogurt today. The lesson I am learning is that my water bottle is my closest friend who I need to stick by me all the time. That and a box of Kleenex, take the small travel-sized ones with me at all times. I am cold all the time! And I'm in So Cal, where the Fall and Winter are not particularly brutal. But if all that is the worst of it, I can manage. So hang in there everybody, things will get better!

Thank you for your encouraging comments.
I will listen to your thoughts and ideas. Kudos to your husband! I never lost taste and smell . I was lucky. Now to start eating better. I am still getting treatments which are really helping to shrink my cancer. Have another pet CT scan in January