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Meet others living with Head & Neck Cancer: Introduce yourself
Head & Neck Cancer | Last Active: 2 days ago | Replies (688)Comment receiving replies
Hi, non HPV oropharyengeal (soft palate) cancer that spread to lymph nodes of neck. Diagnoses on November 2, 2023. Chemoradiation to treat. Had one scare in March 2025 and had a small part of my tongue removed. The medical term is partial glossectomy however literally it wasn't much. Post treatment for almost 2.5 years. Tired of side effects such as radiation fibrosis and swallowing issues. I remember my radiation oncologist told me to keep swallowing during treatment no matter what. I did this in tears every morning. Now speech therapy to strengthen my muscles. Has any one else gone through this? Im grateful and blessed yet feel defeated often. When I returned from FMLA I was let go afterover 12 years.
Replies to "Hi, non HPV oropharyengeal (soft palate) cancer that spread to lymph nodes of neck. Diagnoses on..."
Hi @cnash23
I'm 18yrs. out of my first cancer which was tonsil, then tongue cancer in April of 2024, then skin cancer in 2025. I've been doing speech/swallowing therapy on and off since 2020, in addition added lymphedema therapy after the tongue cancer that included partial glossectomy with a radical forearm free flap surgery and a modified radical neck dissection. Always keeping my eyes open especially on this site and other research to try and get better with all the different quality of life issues after treatments. Definitely had some successes but it's not easy as the grind can be difficult somedays.
Keep pushing yourself and think of all the small wins/ improvements over weeks and months and not days.
Best,
Rob
@cnash23
Welcome Here. We all get it. I can surely resonate to your journey. Diagnosed April & August 2023 SCC Tongue Stage 4B, radical neck dissection, partial glossectomy, removed 80 lymph nodes, just ONE bugger cancerous (how lucky am I)), undergone 33 agressive rounds of radiation. I just saw my ENT surgeon and cancer is ALL gone. Working diligently on optimizing my overall health. A rough road but worthwhile living to the fullest.
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@cnash23 you've been through a lot to survive a deadly disease. Give yourself some grace for what you've overcome. It does get better, and one can learn to adapt to the changes. 20 years of experience tells me so. Good luck!