Hello EricB,

Welcome to this forum and am sorry to hear of your throat cancer diagnosis.

I myself was diagnosed with throat cancer earlier this later summer and finished 6 weeks of radiotherapy 3 weeks ago.

I have kept a little note of my little journey on here and you might want to read..It's under living with cancer and titled "Radiotherapy for throat cancer" which I hope you find helpful.

The symtomps you desribe are pretty much expected and ones that I have experieced/still experiencing still, after treatment complete.

Still stuggling with food and am on supplement drinks called Ensure to help get fuel in bosy as I was not fitted with a PEG.

Mucus was bad for me as well and I was up during the night every half hour at its peak but I would say around the end of second week, the mucas kind of calmed down although I do still have a dry mouth constantly. I was advised and have done from the start and drink around 3/4 litres of water every day which has definetely helped. I also use lip moisturiser to keep lips moist..

Like your self Im missing my food and can resonate with the metalic taste and still have this just now and look forward to a little progession on this front.

As for swallow, were you told to do swallow exercises every day?...I would not say that swallowing stopped but was little more noticable but manageable and the trick was to drink drink then drink as it also helps recovery and uses throat muscles, which in turn helps swallowing.

I wish you well on your journey and you are welcome to ask away with any questions or if you just wanyted to chat, there is a small group of us on here that have been through thoat cancer personnaly and are able to offer any help/support/ answer questions and a few of us are at different stages so that helps. Hazel has a blog as well and am sure she will be along to say hi as well and is a great source for tips etc as well.

Keep in touch and posting on your journey as you are not alone my friend and stay positive.

kind regards

ian

Hi Ian, glad you seem to be coping , I am due to start my treatment  7th Jan. Having 30 radio  sessions with 2 chemo sessions. It really helps reading other people's experience  on here, I know we are all different but it helps. 

Wishing you well,

Gary

Hi Eric and Barb

as the sayingbgoes been there done it with the saliva substitute sprays have tried AS saliva spray works but fornabiut 30; seconds bit better in night boots do one called expert again similar results. Plus has various ones given to me by nurses hope they work for you. My sleep was  a bit better than yours I did 2 hours woke spray sipping water sleep from midnight until 0600 then 2 co codomol 8 mg yeah finally reduced the 30 mg ones.

the drybmouth i have never totally lost saliva which helps no end when eating but it’s got thick n gunky ,which is apparently my saliva  glands working but not fully.  When I think about ut two weeks ago my tongue every time I woke wS stuck to roof of mouth,and now it’s no longer stuck ,making a noise like 2 piece  if Velcro ripping apart !! Nice analogy! But true. 

Barb sounds wonderful and 38;years is a long time you will get to your Ruby I am sure as you like me are full of positive mental attitude with a strong partner behind you.

we were both born in West Yorkshire well suppose west riding in those days ,both come from small mining villages so we are country kids as well. Don’t do big city’s at all. 

Good luck with spray there is also something else online next  that u might consider Xyimelts from the mouth ulcer company ,I have used them but because I am producing saliva they make me make too much !!! They are a small tablet that u literally stick to your gum takes 20 seconds to stick and you get about /3 hours from them in night cost £8.59 ish plus post think Amazon U.K. have them as well. 

Worth a try I have tried all sorts 

good luck with chemomr/t and peg this week you are nearly there m then it’s the Long slow haul to recovery just remember tortoise and hare it’s nit a process that can be rushed.

look forward to hearing from you

Hazel n John 

Hineric and barb

have sent a friend request yesterday should be should on top right if your screen ? Unless coz u are in Spain we may not be able to communicate that way 

h

Hi Hazel, folllowed your blog for a while, great to read anything you post here too, so helpful, i am in Spain too and get the reminders so im sure Eric will, keep giving us tips please!

Hi TFS

youre most welcome thank you for reading my blog,I find it cathartic writing it. 

Ask away when u are ready ,where in Spain are you ?

Hazel

Hi, im in the Canaries, on Tenerife Hazel

Hi

bet it’s warmer there than good old West Yorkshire. Fingers x we fly out to our rental apartment in Murcia province 5 days after result day next Monday.

keep in touch 

Hazel 

We all hope you do, with great results. Look forward to the vlog

Hi Hazel

Cannot see any friend requests and I must admit this social media stuff is all new to me, tell me how and I will send one. Don´t get me wrong I not computer illiterate I am just better with numbers, financial projections, stress curves etc -- woe - that makes me sound very boring. I also write a little, had about 300 articles published on everything from global warming to Genetics. 

Cheers Eric.

Hi Eric, click on my name, lets you send friend request, click on yours,should show you friend requests, personal messages etc.I think!

Hi Eric 

like TFs  says click on your name n it should show friends requests .its nit the most user friendly site I’ve come across ,although to be fair cancer U.K. probably spend their money in better things.

how was your night I woke at 0019 after being in bed less  than an hour and that set the tone for rest of night. Think it’s coz I am reducing mynco codomol pain killers at its peak inwas in 8x 30 mg and probably 40 mls of oramorph a day. Now down to 6 8 mg co codomol and 2 paracetamol.

good luck with treatment this week 

how many more to go

Hazel

Hi Eric 

like TFs  says click on your name n it should show friends requests .its nit the most user friendly site I’ve come across ,although to be fair cancer U.K. probably spend their money in better things.

how was your night I woke at 0019 after being in bed less  than an hour and that set the tone for rest of night. Think it’s coz I am reducing mynco codomol pain killers at its peak inwas in 8x 30 mg and probably 40 mls of oramorph a day. Now down to 6 8 mg co codomol and 2 paracetamol.

good luck with treatment this week 

how many more to go

Hazel