Were you able to work during cancer treatment?

Hi @terryjsmithnorton and welcome.
Working during radiation treatment or radiotherapy is possible but it may depend on not only what you do for work but also how your treatments are progressing. We all have different treatments and all respond differently. While some have gone through six or seven weeks without too much difficulty, most of us have had to cut work either partly or completely in the last two or three weeks and often for one or two weeks after treatment ends. In a nutshell, you should probably plan to miss work. Hopefully all goes well for you but don’t hesitate to reach out if you are experiencing issues.

Hello,
As for me; I was a 54 year old Deputy Sheriff with stage IV.
My care team insisted that I stop working immediately and that I go on disability.
This was a very difficult situation for me as I had been working since I was a child. I did as they requested and it was the right thing to do.
Even now, nearly 7 years later I am unable to work due to; chronic migraines, brain fog, slow thought process, fatigue, forgetfulness, speech impairment blah, blah, blah.
As said by others, we are all different and respond differently to treatments.
Listen to your body and do what’s best for you and your family.
Best regards

MOJO

I retired early, but I had exactly the same course of treatment and I’ll tell you that there is no way I could work through this. My main problem was that I couldn’t and didn’t eat. As a result you get extremely tired and weak. I didn’t really realize what I was in for until my body gave me a huge wake-up call. You may be different, but I wouldn’t plan on working.

@terryjsmithnorton, I think you might also be interested in these related discussions (not specific to head and neck cancers) about working and cancer.
- Going back to work after cancer: Is this exhaustion normal? https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/going-back-to-work/
- Cancer and returning to work https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/cancer-and-work/

Do you work from home?

No. I am a lawyer and have to be in court. I am on leave now because I am so stressed I cannot properly focus on my cases.

I had squamous cell cancer on base of my tongue that had spread to a lymph node in my neck. I finished 7 weeks of radiation on May 5th, along with a weekly dose of chemo. I worked some during treatment and then back full time afterwards. I gotta say the radiation hits hardest the 3 weeks following treatment. That said i did work and continue to. I am still on mostly liquid diet and eat by myself. Other than that, a little tired and weak but only my wife and I know that. I exercise a bit and try to walk daily. I keep adding different foods and liquids to my diet.
Key is live in the moment, go home when you need to, and every week seems to get better.
Above all, have faith in God. Nothing surprises Him and He has you, so let Him.