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Side effects - loss of taste/dry mouth

Nick-M
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Hi All - I’m Nick and completed 6 weeks of radiotherapy and chemo about 9 weeks ago for tonsil cancer. 

I am able to swallow and not needing painkillers anymore so seem to be doing pretty well, however despite being able to swallow most foods I’m finding it really difficult to eat due to lack of taste. It seems crazy but after 4/5 mouthfuls of any food I start to gag - my body just seems to reject it - everything is just bland and tasteless.

Has anyone else experienced this and how do you get over it? I supplement everything with the drinks and try to push to eat more but it’s starting to cause me stress! Also I have tried spicy or strong tastes, different textures etc but nothing helps.

Does your taste come back after time?

I also have dry mouth which was waking me up every hour or so to drink water but my body seems to be getting used to this and only waking up a few times now - any tips on sleeping though would be great - I am using the gel which helps but not great! Again csn anyone advise if this gets better with time?

Thanks for your time!

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    Hi Nick. Sorry about the last post, this site does weird things when I hit reply. I had a SCC on my tongue and had radiotherapy after the surgery. That was 12 years ago and I think taste had recovered almost completely after a couple of years. I still have a level of issue with saliva and I find that having a glass of water to hand and after chewing to just before the point at which I want to swallow, I take a tiny sip of water to finish chewing and then swallow. That approach means I don't water down the taste of the food until the point of swallowing. I would also like to say that looking after your teeth and gums is a very good idea. My teeth definitely suffered from the RT and recently I´ve been getting some implants to replace a number of teeth. 

    Regarding sleeping and the dry mouth I´m afraid I don't have any magic to offer. Initially, I had the problem of lots of gooey saliva making a mess on my pillow but that stopped and I think I have less dry mouth problems now. Sorry, but I don´t remember how long it took to improve. Try not to be impatient. 

    I hope all goes well with you.

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    Hi Nick. Sorry about the last post, this site does weird things when I hit reply. I had a SCC on my tongue and had radiotherapy after the surgery. That was 12 years ago and I think taste had recovered almost completely after a couple of years. I still have a level of issue with saliva and I find that having a glass of water to hand and after chewing to just before the point at which I want to swallow, I take a tiny sip of water to finish chewing and then swallow. That approach means I don't water down the taste of the food until the point of swallowing. I would also like to say that looking after your teeth and gums is a very good idea. My teeth definitely suffered from the RT and recently I´ve been getting some implants to replace a number of teeth. 

    Regarding sleeping and the dry mouth I´m afraid I don't have any magic to offer. Initially, I had the problem of lots of gooey saliva making a mess on my pillow but that stopped and I think I have less dry mouth problems now. Sorry, but I don´t remember how long it took to improve. Try not to be impatient. 

    I hope all goes well with you.

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