questions about getting sick during winter?

timreichhart
timreichhart Member Posts: 194
edited March 2014 in Head and Neck Cancer #1
Hi Guys
I just want to know if you get a cold or sick during winter is it going to be harder to fight off the cold or the sickness after you finishing treatments about 5 months ago. Any good advice to fight this cold because I am scared that its going to lead back in to same symptoms that lead to my cancer.

Any advice would be great.

Comments

  • soccerfreaks
    soccerfreaks Member Posts: 2,788 Member
    colds and cancer
    I am NOT a doctor, but I would advise that colds probably do not lead to cancer. Cold symptoms may have EXPOSED your cancer by sending you to the doctor at a time when the cancer was becoming evident, but in my opinion, colds and the symptoms of colds will not cause cancer.

    Even so, you should be cautious about your immune system (not knowing what your treatments were, I will assume chemotherapy at the very least). Post-treatment, whether surgery, chemo, radiation or any combination of these and other solutions, we are apt to have weakened immune systems.

    I was always averse to flu shots but now get both the flu shot and a pneumonia shot (I had lung cancer, too). You might want to consider doing the same, if you have not already done so.

    Hope this helps.

    Take care,

    Joe
  • D Lewis
    D Lewis Member Posts: 1,581 Member
    Six months out from treatment here
    I did catch the very bad cold from my co-workers. I got the flu shot a month or so ago, but not the pneumonia shot. Seems like the duration of my cold is not longer than colds typically were, prior to my cancer/treatment regime. Cold may not have been MORE severe than prior, but it felt more severe. Without saliva, I seem to be more sensitive to antihistamines, have dryer mouth and eyes, and thicker mucous. Ick. Sleeping has been hard. After a rough 6 or 7 days, it seems to be clearing up just fine.

    Deb
  • timreichhart
    timreichhart Member Posts: 194

    colds and cancer
    I am NOT a doctor, but I would advise that colds probably do not lead to cancer. Cold symptoms may have EXPOSED your cancer by sending you to the doctor at a time when the cancer was becoming evident, but in my opinion, colds and the symptoms of colds will not cause cancer.

    Even so, you should be cautious about your immune system (not knowing what your treatments were, I will assume chemotherapy at the very least). Post-treatment, whether surgery, chemo, radiation or any combination of these and other solutions, we are apt to have weakened immune systems.

    I was always averse to flu shots but now get both the flu shot and a pneumonia shot (I had lung cancer, too). You might want to consider doing the same, if you have not already done so.

    Hope this helps.

    Take care,

    Joe

    joe
    well joe I dont know if you was aware of type of cancer I had but I will give you some back ground of my cancer and it was Nasopharyngeal carcinoma stage IV and how I found out I had that cancer it started out with a simple cold took all the meds for cold then went to sore throat took everything for sore throat cleared that up then I had really bad ear problem on the right ear so I went to doctors care (24 hour doctor place) so waited for the doctor after seeing the doctor and told the doctor my ear was hurting really bad and told them there was a lump on my neck so the doctor looked into the ear and doctor said you have a ear infection and I asked about the lump on the neck and doctor said the lymph node was inflamed due to the ear infection so they gave me all the meds for the ear infection. So I did all the meds that the doctor gave me and I still didnt feel good and ear still hurt. So I went back to doctors care again and waited for the doctor and when I seen the doctor I said I had a ear infection and there was still a lump on the neck so the doctor ordered 2 shots in the butt to see if it would take care if ear infection and they told me give it about a week so I waited a week and still didnt feel good so I walked up to the hospital to the ER and waited to see the ER doctor and I told her (ER doctor) that I had a ear infection and a lump on my neck and told her I went to doctors care and they gave me all the meds for ear infection so ER doctor looked into the right ear and she said it was still ear infection so she walked out the room and about 20mins later she came back in and said I am ordering a CAT/MRI so I got the CAT/MRI scan done and went back into the waiting room so waited other 20mins and ER doctor came back in and she said there was 2 masses in the nose and neck area and they cant tell it was so she told me contact a local ENT doctor in ft.wayne to have a better look. So I scheduled a doctors apt for ENT and me,wife, my mom when with me to ENT apt and ENT doctor looked into my ear and he said there was still ear infection so he was going to place a tube into my ear so he placed it into ear then he felt the lump on the neck and he said he didnt like the feel of the lump so he scoped me and when he was looking he seen the lump and he said he didnt like it so he ordered a PET scan to make sure about this lump and nose area so got the PET scan done waited about 3 days for the results so after waiting went back up there to see the results of the PET scan and he said that he was ordering a biopsy surgery so after the surgery was done and when I was waking up from surgery then my dad told me I had cancer. Then I started chemo first then radiation last.

    so that is why I am scared about getting colds because of this discovery.

    dont say colds cant lead into cancer I just showed it can happen. (not trying be a jerk here but I am just wanted to let everybody know what I went through to find my cancer)

    http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/treatment/nasopharyngeal/Patient

    I had chemo and radiaton:

    chemo was with cisplatin and 5fu
    radiation was with IMRT 7 weeks 5 days straight
  • Hondo
    Hondo Member Posts: 6,636 Member

    joe
    well joe I dont know if you was aware of type of cancer I had but I will give you some back ground of my cancer and it was Nasopharyngeal carcinoma stage IV and how I found out I had that cancer it started out with a simple cold took all the meds for cold then went to sore throat took everything for sore throat cleared that up then I had really bad ear problem on the right ear so I went to doctors care (24 hour doctor place) so waited for the doctor after seeing the doctor and told the doctor my ear was hurting really bad and told them there was a lump on my neck so the doctor looked into the ear and doctor said you have a ear infection and I asked about the lump on the neck and doctor said the lymph node was inflamed due to the ear infection so they gave me all the meds for the ear infection. So I did all the meds that the doctor gave me and I still didnt feel good and ear still hurt. So I went back to doctors care again and waited for the doctor and when I seen the doctor I said I had a ear infection and there was still a lump on the neck so the doctor ordered 2 shots in the butt to see if it would take care if ear infection and they told me give it about a week so I waited a week and still didnt feel good so I walked up to the hospital to the ER and waited to see the ER doctor and I told her (ER doctor) that I had a ear infection and a lump on my neck and told her I went to doctors care and they gave me all the meds for ear infection so ER doctor looked into the right ear and she said it was still ear infection so she walked out the room and about 20mins later she came back in and said I am ordering a CAT/MRI so I got the CAT/MRI scan done and went back into the waiting room so waited other 20mins and ER doctor came back in and she said there was 2 masses in the nose and neck area and they cant tell it was so she told me contact a local ENT doctor in ft.wayne to have a better look. So I scheduled a doctors apt for ENT and me,wife, my mom when with me to ENT apt and ENT doctor looked into my ear and he said there was still ear infection so he was going to place a tube into my ear so he placed it into ear then he felt the lump on the neck and he said he didnt like the feel of the lump so he scoped me and when he was looking he seen the lump and he said he didnt like it so he ordered a PET scan to make sure about this lump and nose area so got the PET scan done waited about 3 days for the results so after waiting went back up there to see the results of the PET scan and he said that he was ordering a biopsy surgery so after the surgery was done and when I was waking up from surgery then my dad told me I had cancer. Then I started chemo first then radiation last.

    so that is why I am scared about getting colds because of this discovery.

    dont say colds cant lead into cancer I just showed it can happen. (not trying be a jerk here but I am just wanted to let everybody know what I went through to find my cancer)

    http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/treatment/nasopharyngeal/Patient

    I had chemo and radiaton:

    chemo was with cisplatin and 5fu
    radiation was with IMRT 7 weeks 5 days straight

    Hi Tim
    I too am NPC, don’t worry Joe is right you are not going to get NPC back because of getting a cold. You do need to take every precaution to protect your self from people who are sick as your immune system might still be recovering from all the treatment just 5 months ago. If you are worried about this talk to your doctor, I believe he will tell you the same thing.

    If you do feel you are getting sick or getting a cold take some extra vitamin C that is what I do.

    Anytime you have any questions my friend don’t be afraid to call
    Hondo
  • soccerfreaks
    soccerfreaks Member Posts: 2,788 Member

    joe
    well joe I dont know if you was aware of type of cancer I had but I will give you some back ground of my cancer and it was Nasopharyngeal carcinoma stage IV and how I found out I had that cancer it started out with a simple cold took all the meds for cold then went to sore throat took everything for sore throat cleared that up then I had really bad ear problem on the right ear so I went to doctors care (24 hour doctor place) so waited for the doctor after seeing the doctor and told the doctor my ear was hurting really bad and told them there was a lump on my neck so the doctor looked into the ear and doctor said you have a ear infection and I asked about the lump on the neck and doctor said the lymph node was inflamed due to the ear infection so they gave me all the meds for the ear infection. So I did all the meds that the doctor gave me and I still didnt feel good and ear still hurt. So I went back to doctors care again and waited for the doctor and when I seen the doctor I said I had a ear infection and there was still a lump on the neck so the doctor ordered 2 shots in the butt to see if it would take care if ear infection and they told me give it about a week so I waited a week and still didnt feel good so I walked up to the hospital to the ER and waited to see the ER doctor and I told her (ER doctor) that I had a ear infection and a lump on my neck and told her I went to doctors care and they gave me all the meds for ear infection so ER doctor looked into the right ear and she said it was still ear infection so she walked out the room and about 20mins later she came back in and said I am ordering a CAT/MRI so I got the CAT/MRI scan done and went back into the waiting room so waited other 20mins and ER doctor came back in and she said there was 2 masses in the nose and neck area and they cant tell it was so she told me contact a local ENT doctor in ft.wayne to have a better look. So I scheduled a doctors apt for ENT and me,wife, my mom when with me to ENT apt and ENT doctor looked into my ear and he said there was still ear infection so he was going to place a tube into my ear so he placed it into ear then he felt the lump on the neck and he said he didnt like the feel of the lump so he scoped me and when he was looking he seen the lump and he said he didnt like it so he ordered a PET scan to make sure about this lump and nose area so got the PET scan done waited about 3 days for the results so after waiting went back up there to see the results of the PET scan and he said that he was ordering a biopsy surgery so after the surgery was done and when I was waking up from surgery then my dad told me I had cancer. Then I started chemo first then radiation last.

    so that is why I am scared about getting colds because of this discovery.

    dont say colds cant lead into cancer I just showed it can happen. (not trying be a jerk here but I am just wanted to let everybody know what I went through to find my cancer)

    http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/treatment/nasopharyngeal/Patient

    I had chemo and radiaton:

    chemo was with cisplatin and 5fu
    radiation was with IMRT 7 weeks 5 days straight

    colds and cancer part 2
    I appreciate the ordeal you went through. My own was not so different. I went to my doctor with a sore throat. He gave me antibiotics. I went back to him weeks, maybe a month later, and the same diagnosis was given, along with a stronger antibiotic. It was only when I called him to tell him that I had a bump on my tongue and could barely even eat that the ball got rolling, that I was told to go immediately to the hospital, and that I was biopsied.

    I never considered that a sore throat led to cancer. Rather, I consider that the sore throat was perhaps a symptom of the cancer, or at least a bellweather that saved my life, ultimately.

    Environment, genetics, behavior: these cause cancer. Colds, sore throats, they do not.

    If you are saying that the cold symptoms make you fear that the cancer is returning, then I understand completely. Everytime I get a sore throat that lasts for awhile, every time I have a cough that seems to last for days, I wonder if the nasty stuff is back. No doubt about it.

    I wish you the best and again urge that you take steps to help your immune system, especially at this time of year.

    Take care,

    Joe
  • Scambuster
    Scambuster Member Posts: 973

    joe
    well joe I dont know if you was aware of type of cancer I had but I will give you some back ground of my cancer and it was Nasopharyngeal carcinoma stage IV and how I found out I had that cancer it started out with a simple cold took all the meds for cold then went to sore throat took everything for sore throat cleared that up then I had really bad ear problem on the right ear so I went to doctors care (24 hour doctor place) so waited for the doctor after seeing the doctor and told the doctor my ear was hurting really bad and told them there was a lump on my neck so the doctor looked into the ear and doctor said you have a ear infection and I asked about the lump on the neck and doctor said the lymph node was inflamed due to the ear infection so they gave me all the meds for the ear infection. So I did all the meds that the doctor gave me and I still didnt feel good and ear still hurt. So I went back to doctors care again and waited for the doctor and when I seen the doctor I said I had a ear infection and there was still a lump on the neck so the doctor ordered 2 shots in the butt to see if it would take care if ear infection and they told me give it about a week so I waited a week and still didnt feel good so I walked up to the hospital to the ER and waited to see the ER doctor and I told her (ER doctor) that I had a ear infection and a lump on my neck and told her I went to doctors care and they gave me all the meds for ear infection so ER doctor looked into the right ear and she said it was still ear infection so she walked out the room and about 20mins later she came back in and said I am ordering a CAT/MRI so I got the CAT/MRI scan done and went back into the waiting room so waited other 20mins and ER doctor came back in and she said there was 2 masses in the nose and neck area and they cant tell it was so she told me contact a local ENT doctor in ft.wayne to have a better look. So I scheduled a doctors apt for ENT and me,wife, my mom when with me to ENT apt and ENT doctor looked into my ear and he said there was still ear infection so he was going to place a tube into my ear so he placed it into ear then he felt the lump on the neck and he said he didnt like the feel of the lump so he scoped me and when he was looking he seen the lump and he said he didnt like it so he ordered a PET scan to make sure about this lump and nose area so got the PET scan done waited about 3 days for the results so after waiting went back up there to see the results of the PET scan and he said that he was ordering a biopsy surgery so after the surgery was done and when I was waking up from surgery then my dad told me I had cancer. Then I started chemo first then radiation last.

    so that is why I am scared about getting colds because of this discovery.

    dont say colds cant lead into cancer I just showed it can happen. (not trying be a jerk here but I am just wanted to let everybody know what I went through to find my cancer)

    http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/treatment/nasopharyngeal/Patient

    I had chemo and radiaton:

    chemo was with cisplatin and 5fu
    radiation was with IMRT 7 weeks 5 days straight

    Immune System rebuilding
    Tim,

    Sorry for your concern and yes it is always a concern. Cutting to chase as I have to meet a group shortly.

    I have taken the approach to rebuild my immune system form the ground up as it is after all, our immune system that is our first line of defense and often the second and third line as well. Some chemo therapies artificially stimulate the immune function on our bodies at a cellular level while other chemos are cell poisoners and others affect the DNA coding and other reactions to stop the cell dividing, (reproducing) or moving through normal cell activity in order to stop the growth and spread of cancer. As such there is some admission that immune response is critical

    Back to my point, the body I believe is best if it can do the work itself as it was designed ie have a robust immune system which will knock out the bad cells be it a cold (Virus), bacterial infection or cancer (rogue cells). Why not help the body rebuild the immune system back to full function, and with non-toxic methods ?

    To do that, you need to feed your body the right stuff and often add extra support in order to restore your now damaged and compromised immune system (Rads and Chemo play havoc). You can choose to do this with taking herbs and other supplements, which includes herbal remedies designed or known to boost immune function. This can also include TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine).

    Your conventional treatment is based around man made chemicals to intervene to combat the disease, but they rarely do anything to help the body fight the cause or compromised body function, certainly not for any length of time. You can or course still choose this route.

    My advice is to learn as much as you can about the immune system and then decided what you want to do about it.

    Personally I chose the supplement and diet route. I am lazy and have a busy life so it suits me. I take a hand full of vitamin capsules, some in powder form I mix with a nutrition shake and pour on my s=cereal and fruit, and a couple in liquid form I mix with a small glass of water and knock that down each morning. I also subscribe to the Anti-Cancer diet.

    The results - all my pre-existing ailments have disappeared including: chronic fatigue, migraine and other headaches, fibromyalgia (joint and muscle pain), gout, chronic gastric reflux, back pain.. and oh I almost forgot.. Cancer.

    At the moment 3 of the 5 people in my house have colds or flu (I have 2 tiny kids who are bug factories - preschool) and at my office, several are sick. I travel and live in a densely populated part of the world and so am exposed to many many more people and bug ridden surfaces and sneezing coughing people than most. I have not once had a cold or flu since I started this regimen, 'not once'. I have on 3 occasions felt cold or flu coming on but within 24 hours it stops dead in it's tracks and i wake up 100% fine. To me, this means my immune system is working and working well. Am I happy about this ? You bet your A**.

    My energy is high and level all day so I don;t feel tired at all except from occasional broken sleep from the 'Desert Mouth Project' (Rads to the head) which most of us suffer. Apart from that, I am great. I am off in 5 minutes on my Saturday morning bike ride. We will ride 30 miles hard ride. No problem for me now. (Couldn't say that prior to having Cancer).

    You can PM me or check through my diet and supplement and lifestyle details on my Expressions page. Funny how so many of us have lingering issues and do very little about it. There is a 'sub forum' here where many of us now share our diets, supplements and other information and It is amazing how well most are doing. I just wish more people opened up to this path and at the very least give it a try instead of the usual 'my Doctor said' responses' I read every day.

    Hope this one lands in the right place for you Tim.

    Scam
  • dennis318
    dennis318 Member Posts: 349 Member
    D Lewis said:

    Six months out from treatment here
    I did catch the very bad cold from my co-workers. I got the flu shot a month or so ago, but not the pneumonia shot. Seems like the duration of my cold is not longer than colds typically were, prior to my cancer/treatment regime. Cold may not have been MORE severe than prior, but it felt more severe. Without saliva, I seem to be more sensitive to antihistamines, have dryer mouth and eyes, and thicker mucous. Ick. Sleeping has been hard. After a rough 6 or 7 days, it seems to be clearing up just fine.

    Deb

    colder weather changes
    I hade cancer 4 of the larynx, Since it has gotten colder here in TN, my muscius is thicker, gets caught, and I am extremely dry at night, in I sleep 4 more hours than i use to, WHY? Is it my boy or is it not enough oexygen at night, and ideas, I have a humidifieer going, Robitussin, and taking acid reflux meds, i was having heavy reflux at night, Doctor suggested this, My steam is running out, normal or is just beacuase of the l/s larynx being dead....Please feel free, Rads whee over January of 2010.....Dennis
  • kingcole42005
    kingcole42005 Member Posts: 178

    colds and cancer
    I am NOT a doctor, but I would advise that colds probably do not lead to cancer. Cold symptoms may have EXPOSED your cancer by sending you to the doctor at a time when the cancer was becoming evident, but in my opinion, colds and the symptoms of colds will not cause cancer.

    Even so, you should be cautious about your immune system (not knowing what your treatments were, I will assume chemotherapy at the very least). Post-treatment, whether surgery, chemo, radiation or any combination of these and other solutions, we are apt to have weakened immune systems.

    I was always averse to flu shots but now get both the flu shot and a pneumonia shot (I had lung cancer, too). You might want to consider doing the same, if you have not already done so.

    Hope this helps.

    Take care,

    Joe

    I agree with you Joe, a cold cannot cause cancer
    I agree with you Joe. I think this gentlemen should call his oncologist and verify but I am nearly 100% postive a simple cold cannot cause cancer.