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Just starting out on this journey…
Head & Neck Cancer | Last Active: Oct 31, 2022 | Replies (9)Comment receiving replies
JMF, this helps me understand your mom's situation a bit better. I'd like to tag a few of our long-time and helpful members like @alpaca @loli @hrhwilliam and @calenbd to bring them into this discussion. They have had treatments for oral cancer and can share a bit more about their experiences or answer your questions as you and your siblings face decisions about your mom's care.
This article offers a comprehensive list of questions you may consider asking her care team.
– Oral and Oropharyngeal Cancer: Questions to Ask the Health Care Team https://www.cancer.net/cancer-types/oral-and-oropharyngeal-cancer/questions-ask-health-care-team
I can imagine that you're most concerned with your mom's comfort and helping her live her final days with as little pain and confusion as possible. Has your mom been offered a palliative care team that can offer comfort care? Are you familiar with palliative care?
Replies to "JMF, this helps me understand your mom's situation a bit better. I'd like to tag a..."
We are just at the beginning stages of this. We got her diagnosis from her ENT on Tuesday and have our first appt with an Oncologist tomorrow (Friday the 28th). My siblings and I had a family zoom call last night to discuss the options the ENT told us about: surgery, chemo & radiation, palliative care, or nothing. He told us the surgery could be as much as 14 hours because of the placement of her mass on her tongue going to her vocal cords. That is out of the question for us. Most of us agree that chemo is probably not a great option either. So we are going to ask about palliative care maybe some type of radiation directly to the mass? I’m not even sure that is a possibility but at this point it’s all we have come up with. I’m sure that oncologist will have more information for us. The other issue is taking care of all this from her home or putting her in some type of a care center or hospital. She has full-time health aides at the house with her, but they would not be able to handle all of the appointments for treatments. I’m not really sure my siblings and I can handle that either. So we have a lot of decisions to make in the coming days. I think all of you for your kind words, information, suggestions, and prayers. I’m sure I will be back with questions, and keep you posted . God bless you all. @alpaca @loli @hrhwilliam @calenbd
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Like your mom, I was also diagnosed with stage 3 tongue and neck cancer. My treatments included 7 weeks of chemotherapy and 35 radiation treatments. I won’t lie that the process and especially the side effects were not pleasant. If I didn’t focus on the end goal of eradicating the cancer, it would have been difficult to get through it. If your mom can’t comprehend the pain she will endure as a process to recovery, it will not be easy for her. Inability to swallow, throat pain, loss of taste, excessive throat mucus, loss of appetite, and dry mouth are symptoms I experienced. Also, the chemo and nausea medications caused constipation. Not to scare you or make you decide to decline treatment, but I wanted you to know what your mom will be facing. For me, the end result (no cancer) justified the discomfort I endured. Also an advocate (like you) will definitely help her make it through. My advocate was my wife. She helped me endure and saved my life. My best to you and my God bless your mom and your family.