I am now post 8 months from my radiation treatment for throat cancer.

Posted by AL GiL @jg99t9, Jun 20 10:41pm

I am wondering if some of these symptoms are just part of the healing process. I assume they are but I just want to know if anyone else has had some of these.
Besides still having irritation on my tongue, gums, and throat, and the usual dry mouth along with never ending mucous in my sinuses, is it normal to have some of these other symptoms like sore and numb teeth that feel like they still have food stuck between them even after I flossed? And when eating anything sweet like ice cream, you can initially taste it, but after a few more bites, it loses its flavor? And finally, being sensitive to the spiciness of certain foods that were not a problem before including ground pepper on eggs?

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William Olsen, Volunteer Mentor | @hrhwilliam | Jun 21 7:19am

It sounds like you are eating better than I at eight months. For me tastes had changed and I am not sure if it ever returned to normal or I got used to the changes. Certainly there are foods I no longer eat or enjoy whilst others are new and tasty.
The teeth thing I believe has more to do with radiation than with taste. Just my opinion but the same statements were made by Japanese victims who survived the bomb radiation. Many patients in this group who have had radiotherapy also make similar statements. It goes away in time. Else we just get used to it.
As for the rest of the issues, in my opinion and experience, you have several more years of recovery ahead. This is your new normal for now but likely things will improve with time. You are not alone in this. But you are on the mend.

sandy8043 | @sandy8043 | Jun 21 8:24am

I'm having same issues. Some foods like mayo, salad dressings, anything with vinegar stings my tongue. I'm using the baking soda rinse I used post surgery and that seems to tame it a bit. Still can't drink anything carbonated.
My taste changes, too as I eat. Anything sweet like ice cream or yogurt switches from sweet to salty after a bit.

jonesja | @jonesja | Jun 21 8:27am

I am about 2 years post radiation. I would say at 9 months out I could eat fairly well and my Taste was about 60% or so. And yes as I ate the taste level would go down. Spicy foods were an issue. Slight Dry mouth, Mucous and low Salvia production. Some ongoing irritations inside the mouth . My teeth ached very little but were not normal. Flash to today. I can eat about anything I wish including spicy foods which I love. Salvia production is almost back to normal which eliminates dry mouth for the most part. No mouth irritations or teeth issues. As William noted you will have a "New Normal" and Radiation recovery is very slow. Hang in there it will get better!

56tburd | @56tburd | Jun 21 10:26am

After treatment, I could no longer taste sugar, making chocolate, among other things, taste disgusting. A real crisis for a chocoholic. After 19 years, I can say things got better, but I've never fully recovered my sense of taste. As William Olsen said, you will find your new normal. In the meantime, there is a lot of great advice here to help you cope. I've raised this issue elsewhere, that you need to monitor your blood pressure closely as time progresses, particularly your nocturnal blood pressure. 80% of patients develop baroreceptor failure, which causes your blood pressure to spike. It can be a real challenge to get it under control, something I'm still trying to achieve. Good luck!

roblem | @roblem | Jun 21 2:24pm

Also, I am sure depending on what type of radiation you had photon, or proton will determine these side effects. I had 35 rounds of photon radiation in 2008 which is more harmful as it hits more of your healthy parts of your body. I can tell you any carbonated and most spicy products are still a problem for me. Alcohol too but not as bad as the carbonation/spicy effect.

Best of luck on your journey.

AL GiL | @jg99t9 | Jun 21 6:10pm

In reply to @hrhwilliam "It sounds like you are eating better than I at eight months. For me tastes had..." + (show)

Thanks for your input, William. I was wondering how long has it been for you since you came off treatment?

AL GiL | @jg99t9 | Jun 21 6:12pm

In reply to @sandy8043 "I'm having same issues. Some foods like mayo, salad dressings, anything with vinegar stings my tongue...." + (show)

Thanks Sandy.
I will look into the baking soda treatment.

AL GiL | @jg99t9 | Jun 21 6:19pm

In reply to @jonesja "I am about 2 years post radiation. I would say at 9 months out I could..." + (show)

I'm glad things are a lot better for you now. Your response was very encouraging. I know it is a slow healing process. What threw me off was when I first got off treatment I googled how long post treatment do you start to feel better, and it answered about 6 weeks. This is completely false information I got a more realistic assessment since then from my ENT and post cancer patients like yourself.
Thanks for your response. I hope you continue to thrive.

AL GiL | @jg99t9 | Jun 21 6:30pm

In reply to @56tburd "After treatment, I could no longer taste sugar, making chocolate, among other things, taste disgusting. A..." + (show)

I also love chocolate. One of my favorite things in the world was See's candies. I am not able to eat that yet, but I hope I can someday. Anyway, if that doesn't happen perhaps it will be for the better because sweets are not the healthiest thing for you, but it would be nice. It's been quite a while for you so that is a good sign and I'm glad things have gotten better for you. I hope your blood pressure stays stable and I will keep that in mind as time goes on.
Al

AL GiL | @jg99t9 | Jun 21 6:32pm

In reply to @roblem "Also, I am sure depending on what type of radiation you had photon, or proton will..." + (show)

Thank you Roblem,
I hope you continue to do well and enjoy more things as time goes on.

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