Radiation therapy benefits after negative Biopsy and zero cancer

Posted by sagar40 @sagar40, Oct 14, 2021

My mother at age 79+ had growth in neck in Dec 2020 and. She underwent surgery to remove the growth in neck and the biopsy confirmed Head & Neck cancer with unknown primary source in April 2021.

She continued her Ayurveda treatment along with meditation, massages for Amma (cancer indicates Tamas) and some cow urine treatment for 1 month.

They had to remove small amount of tissue once again in Sept 2021, due to infection and biopsy report for cancer came negative. PET CT Scan had shown some suspicion of fast absoption of nutrition there.

Now the doctors were a bit doubtful about the need for RT but then after my sister asking second time, agreed and suggested RT for 30 visits.

Mother is reporting quite a bit of difficulty swallowing, feeling very weak and drained after 4 days of RT already. She is continuing powerful meditations.

Is there any particular need or benefit of RT besides general precautionary step to avoid recurrence of cancer? Some cells will lurk around obviously but body can also heal itself usually (from what I read its common.)

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Head & Neck Cancer Support Group.

esikora | @esikora | Oct 14, 2021

Sounds like the drs.
don't trust
alternative therapies to prevent a recurrance....How successful is radiation in that regard? What does the research show? If studies say highly effective, it might be worth it.

Sue, Volunteer Mentor | @sepdvm | Oct 18, 2021

Head and neck radiation can be very difficult to live through with lasting side effects. At age 58, I felt like the 7 week treatment would kill me faster than the cancer. I survived and have had no local recurrence for 9 years. My biggest recommendation is to get a second opinion, preferably from a referral cancer center. Could the PET result have been positive due to the infection, and not cancer? A good question for the doctors. At age 79, I would be concerned about dealing with all the side effects of a prolonged radiation treatment. There is a shortened version being used at Mayo now for Head and Neck Cancer but I don't know much about it. I support complementary therapy and have done an immunotherapy from outside the USA for 9 years, but it cannot replace traditional medicine with the studies to behind it.

Becky, Volunteer Mentor | @becsbuddy | Oct 18, 2021

@sagar40 I’m glad that you’re doing some research for your mom. All of you are having to make some very difficult decisions. As @sepdvm has said, radiation therapy can be very hard on a person. Besides the immediate effects of RT, there are the long term effects. Swallowing/eating can be very difficult because the throat is so sore. You, and your sister,need to ask pointed questions of the doctors: what is the main reason for the RT? Is it curative or palliative? Will she have much pain and how will they treat it? Will nutrition become an issue and how will that be treated? What happens if mom misses a day of treatment?
Also, your mom is 79. Is she, and you, really willing to go through with this treatment and all the side effects? Ive not had radiation therapy, but i was an oncology nurse for many years. Radiation to the head and neck was always so difficult
Will you pease let me know what you all decide?