My hubby has throat cancer

Hi, 

On Thursday 27/04/17 my hubby and I had the rug pulled from under us when he was told that he had metastatic cancer in the lymph nodes of his neck. 

I'd noticed a slight swelling on the side of his neck back in January but as he had man flu at the time we put it down to a swollen gland, over the next few months it just kept getting bigger but I couldn't convince him to go to the doc (the big feerty), others started noticing the lump which was now about the size of an egg so he gave in and saw the doc who then sent of a request for an ultrasound biopsy. He had the biopsy on the 3rd of March and we put it to the back if our minds. On April 10thi was at the GP and just happened to ask if the biopsy results for Paul had came back, nope, no results, but about 10days later an appointment came through for him to attend the ENT clinic at our local hospital on 27th April, we went into the appointment on the premise that "no news is good news" boy were we wrong. My hubby has throat cancer that's spread to his lymph nodes, he's going in on Wednesday morning to have exploratory surgery to look for the primary site of the cancer, he'll also have a scan to check to see if its travelled elsewhere. It'll then take a week or so for the doc to gather all the relevant info and make a plan. 

Sorry for the long winded explanation but I think putting it all down on paper (virtual) has actually helped me. 

Gailx

 

  • Hi Gail

    just to let you know Ive accepted your friend request 

    xx Emma 

  • Hi, I have been diagnosed  with throat  cancer. I have two bouts of chemo and 6 weeks of radiotherapy  starting Jan 2019. 

    What is a peg as this has not been discussed  with me yet.

    Thanks

    Gazza

  • Hi Gazza

    Sorry to hear youve just been diagnosed but welcome to our small but friendly and supportive group.

    The answer to your question is a PEG (per cutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy) or a RIG (radioscopically inserted per cutaneous gastrostomy) is a feeding tube inserted directly through the abdominal wall into the stomach bypassing the throat and need to swallow. In head and neck cancers they are ofren used when undergoung chemoradiation treatment to help maintain nutrition when ordinary swallowing becomes diffucult or impossible. Different Oncology teams in different areas have set ways of managing patients undergoing the treatment and not every team uses them from the beginning. Some reams use a wait and see approach and if nutritional input becomes a problem then may consider a nasogastric tube - a tube put up the nose into the stomach and secured allowing feeding to be done that way.

    It maybe that you will get an appointment with the specialist nutrition nurse to discuss your options.

    Hope tbis gelps and feel free to ask any ither questions you might have and Ill try to help.

    good luck and best wishes 

    Emma

     

  • Hi hope you outcome is good Gazza. I have just been diagnosed with throat cancer so bit worried 

    Regards Debs 

  • Hi Debs,

    Sorry to hear you have this dreadful diagnosis. 

    The chemo and radiotherapy do make you poorly but it does work. I completed my treatment on March the 1st . During this time I lost about 3 stone, I was advised to have a peg but refused. At one stage I had a tube through my nose, but this only lasted about 5 days as I was sick and it came up so I pulled it out.

    I forced my fortisips down me with milkshakes, it is not easy but you have to get nutrition into you.

    I am now in remission and have put half a stone back on and I am back at work. My taste buds are slowly coming back along with my saliva. The main side effect is the fatigue,  I have to have early nights but this will get easier.

    I wish you well , stay positive and dont be afraid to message me as it is still very fresh in my mind and wish I had someone to ask for advice.

    God bless you,

    Gazza.