Hi John

I had radiotherapy for 20 sessions  to my head jaw neck and mouth after having a radical neck dissection to remove parotid gland and lymphs due to matastatic SCC. That was 10 years ago. I had all the symptoms you mention. Your taste will come back 90% after 2 years. The lymphodema will also resolve itself but needs daily input from you doing neck stretching excercises which the hospital should have given you to do. Ditto swallowing excercises where you hold your tongue between your teeth and do a hard swallow with a sip of water. Also throat singing excercises. The radiotherapy causes the muscles to lose their elasticity and need to be constantly stretched to counteract this. I also have breathing problems and fatigue which Im told the radiotherapy should not cause.Your sleep pattern follows mine bed at 10 awake at 3am with a head full of negative thoughts.. I think this is a psychlogical side effect like PTSD after the horrific treatment which is neck radiotherapy. Ive had a relapse now metastisis to bones and lung so different set of probllems to contend with. I hope you are able to overcome your problems and continue a fairly normal enjoyable life.

Ed

Thanks Ed

Your.comments are very reassuring for me. This is the second time round for me as I had non Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 2006 ! I am a very positive 82 year old man who accepts that I have a few more years left in me at best but would like some quality of life for that period!

Good luck with your treatment 

John