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

baby steps all,the way , I thought I could substitute a 30 mg comcodomol for a paracetamol omg no way never felt as ill.

when yiu are ready I will tell you how I did it butbthink hare and tortoise very very slowly substitute 1 30 mg for a 8 mg cocodomel and The oramorph inreduced by a mil a session.

Just remember each one done is one nearer the end and the slow road to recovery don’t rush anything .

take care keep in touch .

Hazel

Exactly the right advice thanks. Hope Eric is ok.

The end is in touching distance for me now the time really does fly, today was session 26 of 30, Doc is pleased with me and how Iv coped with it, weight now stable but swallowing has got harder in the last few days. My last session should be next monday but he wants to change that so I have 2 sessions on friday so that theres no gap of 2 days over the weekend, i`ll know more tomorrow.

It will be great not having to go next week :), then a check up in 6 weeks and scan in 12 weeks to check all has worked.

Dave 

Hi Dave

onward and forward good idea if they do 2 I also had a bank holiday in my last week and they did 6 on me a few staff came in on the Saturday. .

the next process is the long slow road to recovery I am now 16 weeks post radiotherapy have had my pet ct scan results on Monday. As I am sure you know there are still some bad weeks ahead but I am proof that if me a meee wimp if a 61 years old can do it anyone can just take things slowly. Remembered yiuve had hospital staff every day although we all look forward to that first week it’s a hell of a shock to loose the comfort blanket of the hospital.

one word of advise drink drink drink try for at keastb2/3 litres theoughtbthe day as hard as it might be 

good lick

keep in rouch

hazel

Thanks Hazel I hope your results go well obviously, Im no kid myself and will be 61 in April.

I`ll keep the fluids going in thats really good advise, it works!

Dave

Am sure Eric  is fine he doesn’t come on the site every day think he has chemo as well today so probably sleeping.

good luck with tomorrow 

hazel

Hi Dave any questions just shout out . I brought my mask home she’s hanging in the garage are you bringing yours. 

I am 62 in February omg nearly grown up !!!! So I would have been a school year in front of yiu. 

Hope julie is  getting read to becomes ti become nursemaid , word of warning g John and I did have words around the first few weeks and we’ve been married 40 years in June’s and never argue it but it stretches everyone to almost breaking point. It was Jihns inability Tom ok eggs to my exactungbstandards we laugh at it now 

h n j 

I cant praise Julie enough and this has brought us closer if anything...and Im a bad patient because Iv got no patience, I might bring the mask home in fact I might give it Julie as a present :)

VHi Dave n Julie 

John  was so frustrated that the only thing he could do for me was to drive cook shop clean he couldn’t protect me from any of the pain .On the last week the radiotherapy team let him come in and help them to strap me down on table I think that when  he saw that they were somcaring it helped him. But being a strong man he found it hard to express his fear at losing me just as we had both retired to enjoy the fruits of  our labour .he wanted to shout but like he said it wasn’t him that it was happening to and he wanted it to be him , you know how painful and tiring it all is Johnjusr felt useless we are ok now just wait8ng for Monday 

Venezia yes I names the mask !!! Hangs in the garage as a permanent reminder of how she saved my life .

night

haEl 

Hi Hazel

Somehow I have managed to delete half the posts lost the last one you sent.

Like you had a rotten night and probably no more than 2 hours sleep. Still trying not to resort to strong painkillers. Yesterday, the Doc  put me on Enantyum 25 mg, its an anti inflamatory and a mild pain killer. Tried one this morning and it seemed to work, certainly reduced the pain and helped with swallowing.

And you are absolutely right, I am spending most of my time in bed trying to catch up on sleep, you just feel so much better when you have slept well

Speak soon, regards Eric.

Hi Hazel

Somehow I have managed to delete half the posts lost the last one you sent.

Like you had a rotten night and probably no more than 2 hours sleep. Still trying not to resort to strong painkillers. Yesterday, the Doc  put me on Enantyum 25 mg, its an anti inflamatory and a mild pain killer. Tried one this morning and it seemed to work, certainly reduced the pain and helped with swallowing.

And you are absolutely right, I am spending most of my time in bed trying to catch up on sleep, you just feel so much better when you have slept well

Speak soon, regards Eric.

Hi Eric 

have replied to your request hopefully unfinished it top right corner.

re painkillers I was the same but after oncologist gave me a good talking to and said the clue is in the name painkillers .Our bodies are going through hell and need all the help they’d can get m the strongest I had from late Augustbwas 8 x 30 mgcodeine combined with 500 paracetamol plus topped up with liquid oramorph I was never drugged but it took the pain away and allowed me to sleep.

i tried stopping in November roosoon, butbteied again mis secemeber and have done it very very slowly now in 6x 8 mg codeine paracetamol and 2 paracetamol with the aim of when we get to Spain just being in paracetamol.

i have nompain it’s justbthe sleeping now butbthats my body sAying where’s the codeine itbwillmoass

sleep is a necessary evil tonrecovery along with food

Hazel 

Hi Hazel, sent  you a private message, let me know if you received it Ok. 

Speak soon Eric

Hi Eric, how are the amino acids going? Much help and any side effects? Thanks.

Hi TFS

Amino mix helps tremendously and as far as I can tell no side effects. Had no mucus or mouth ulcer issues. I do not actually use Aminomix at the moment as at 576.00 for 100 sachets the Spanish system would not fund it. Managed to get one 100 sachet box approved so we got our money back. But I now use a better and much cheaper solution. I buy pure glutamen from Bulk Powders ans a full spectrum amino acid from G&G, easily available on line. One teaspoon glutamen, one teaspoon Amino acid full spectrum gives you a better concentration than Amino mix for about 80.00 € . AminomixBi1 is a real rip off, it works if you can get it approved. Hope that helps.

Regards Eric.

Thanks Eric, i was getting back pain, which can be a glutamen supplement side effect, but it seems ok, may have been other cause. They gave me another box Friday, they are 355 euros a box of 90 here, i was aware of your solution, pardon the pun, so will go that way if they stop giving me them. Its been not bad mucous wise, and one slight sore, not an ulcer, so im giving the aminos the credit, they are called Aa Mezcla NM, as you say, rip off, saw a guy flogging some on milanuncios for 90 euros musta had some left!  Good luck Eric thanks for replying, ive a long way to go yet, 23 sessions,  looking like Feb 14th before im done, bound to be more issues down the line.