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Head and Neck Cancer

Archives for July 2012

Pathology report updated
Hello ! Well finally after 7 months I now know on my histology report. I definately have adcc...and histology showing all 3 tissue types in tumor (cribform, tubular, solid) was told path doc. had quite a time typing me because of this. So what does this mean ? I am definately in what is deemed the middle group for…
hwt
Please read your mail. You're giving me a complex.
30 Years Old - Stage 4 Paranasal Squamous Cell Carcinoma - Request for Help
My husband is 30 years old. He has always been the "picture of health" as an avid athlete and health conscious young man. In March of 2011 he was diagnosed with stage 4 squamous cell carcinoma of the paranasal sinuses with an unknown primary. The tumor spread along the nerves through to the sphenoid and cavernous sinuses…
Starting my treatments tomorrow morning
Start treatments tomorrow morning, radiation and chemo. what should i expect from 1st chemo treatment.
Waiting is soooo hard
Had my 1st CAT w/contrast today and am suffering that scanxiety that Skiffin talked about. Doctor was to have results on their desk by 10:30 and I have been on pins and needles since. I realize they have patients, appts. etc. but the waiting is so overwhelming. Praying the surgery, rads and chemo took care of the beast.…
Boost burning my tongue
Well I’m down to 10 more radiation treatments after today. I have blisters in my mouth. The worst is the ones on my tongue. No taste except for the horrible taste always in my mouth. Swallowing is with difficulty, I can eat wieners (Oscar Meyers) and some streamed vegetables (Squash, Carrots and Brussels Sprouts) with…
For Pat (longtermsurvivor)
I know this is your expertise, so I took the chance that you would answer this question, please!! I have been on .5 Estradiol pills for probably 8 years or so. Wanted to get off several times but my gyn explained the pros and cons and I stayed on. But throughout this ordeal, I've been so worried that after getting over…
Happy Birthday, if I may...
Today is my beloved husband's 61st birthday. After spending a "relaxing" 8 hours in chemo, our family went to dinner and celebrated him. As some of you on this board know, he is being treated for metastatic head and neck cancer...now in his lungs. His ct scan on the 3rd of July showed SO MUCH improvement. It was a…
Radical neck dissection?
So I saw a post about swelling post surgery and that got me thinking, what is the actual definition of a radical neck dissection? Is it determined by how much tissue they remove or the number of lymph nodes? I had 47 lymph nodes removed from the right side of my neck back at the end of March along with the tumor from my…
Accupuncture for nerve damage
Hello everyone ! Was suggested to me today to investigate accupuncture as an alternative to meds for nerve damage done due to surgery. Does anyone have any experience with this ? I'm thinking maybe, why not ? Thanks for any imput, Katie
7 weeks since surgery and my neck is still swollen
my surgery was 7 weeks ago. should my neck still be swollen?
Saliva
Hi! I had neck and base of tongue cancer, and am 10 weeks removed from 38 radiation treatments + weekly Erbitux. I tolerated treatment well, but I'm afraid my salivary glands got completely fried in the process. I have almost no saliva, and talking and eating are very difficult. Is there any hope or am I going to be like…
SINGLE DIGITS!!!
9 rads to go! Doc also said my tonsil tissue has all of the sudden shrunk significantly!!! Yay!!! (I did have a large portion of the tonsil removed but my tumor was so widespread it would have taken "combat style" surgery to get it all... Docs words)
Frequency of changing PEG tube
I did a search and could not find any information on how often the PEG needs to be changed. In May, Buzz had a new PEG inserted. We were told to have it replaced in August. My concern is that now that he is on Hospice and becoming weaker by the day, do I put him through another tube change? I don't know if I will even be…
Follow up post surgery
I had my post surgery follow up with the doctor last Friday. The primary was found in my right tonsil. It was completely encapsulated and it was about 2cm in size. All of the other biopsies taken during surgery came back clean. They did not remove my upper right lymph node, which is driving me crazy knowing that it is…
How long before G-tube is removed
My mother had the feeding tube placed on 7/3/12 and is home receiving 4 cans a day and continuous feeding throughout the night. She can't even swallow water or her own saliva at this point due to the radiations effects. Also, does anyone have any idea how long it will take for her throat to heal from the radiations effects…
4 more days of radiation and last chemo was done last week
hi everybody this has been a rough trip but I'm seeing the light at the end of the tunnel I finished my chemo last week and radiation will be finished Thursday and then the journey starts back up hill I've noticed my throat has been extremely sore lately so I have been drinking water and using my feeding tube flushing with…
Finished with Rads!
Finished with both radiation and chemo (erbitux) and through the 2 week 'cooking' period and now I'm hoping to start feeling a little better. I have all the classic after effects, no saliva, dry mouth, no sense of taste, skin burns on my neck, sunburn like appearance to my upper chest and shoulders, fatigue and my all time…
giving up alcohol?
no brainer, right? I mean, the first two questions the oncologist asked were, "do you smoke?" and "do you drink?" but is there some small amount of drink that eventually could be tolerated without risk? like one guinness per month? or every three months? I asked my oncologist about this, and all he said was that it's going…
Occasional hearing loss?
I have completed my 7 week rad treatment in Sept 2011 and my last Cisplatin and 5FU session in Dec 2011 for stage 4 non-metastasis Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma. I have been experiencing occasional hearing loss in my right ear. I can only hear myself talking. It happens once a month that last for about an hour. This started in…
VACATION???
I'm a traveller by nature. I can only go about 6 months without getting the itch to plan a decent vacation. Went to San Francisco once, fell in love with it and want to take my husband there. Question is this... How soon is too soon? I know I should probably make it next year, if I'm being realistic. My treatments are done…
recently diagnosed
Hi, My name is Kevin Myhaver and I was recently diagnosed with scc of the tonsil, stage IVA as it has spread to Lymph nodes on both sides of my neck. So newly diagnosed that we only met with the Radiation-Oncologist for the first time last week and we are meeting with the Medical-Oncologist for the first time this coming…
praise for the chemo port!
that clever device has saved me from vast amounts of pain, mess, and complication. whoever invented it, genius! better health to everybody, cheers.
wondering about going back to work
I am 7 radiation treatments away from being done, last day will be August 1st. I have my last chemo this coming week, split over 3 days. As it stands right now my family medical leave is up August 20th. They have said I can apply for an extension but it will have to be approved by the vice=president over our dept. I work…
Non smoker 3 days !
Hello everyone ! Darn internet keeps kicking me off ! Storming here a little ! Any ways guys and gals....Kate's a non smoker. Also off pain medication and valium. Yeap thought I was gonna be crazed....but no not even an issue ! 40 yrs....a lifetime addiction for me. Thought I caused my adcc, but have been told no…
Erbitux "half-life"?
just curious...how long the erbitux inhibitor stays in the body and continues to do what it does. I had eight weekly infusions, the last one on July 3. while still in treatment, had the typical rash on chest and face. but the rash was much better by the time of the final infusion. it was really never painful, just hideous.…
Wife with cheek carcinoma
Wife was diagnosed with cheek cancer stage 4 (2 nodes involved). At age 80 decided against radical surgery and decided to go the chemo /radiation route. 6 weeks chemo followed by 7 weeks of chemo/radiation. Just finished week 4 with no significant side effects--according to her. No feeding tube but mainly Ensure diet.…
To thick to spit
was what I ran into last nite. Folks have spoken of a dry heve of plem almost makes you feel like you are choking and not going to get it out. It was my 1st being that thick and concerning. Nothing since then, but I have others describe this dry heve/mucus. Do we deal with it the same way as reqular mucus. Because right…
Gobble, gobble
woke up this morning with my neck swollen again, it had pretty much gone down...trying to tell myself it's normal...I have a final fitting today for my dentures, Lord, I can't wait to have teeth again...anyway, I see my Dr the 2nd of Aug. This coming week is my Chicago boys summer visit with Grandmom & Papa, including a 3…
Blisters
So I've been eating normally for about 2 weeks now with the exception of acidic and fried foods because I just can't tolerate them. I'm doing pretty well, taste is definitely not 100%, but it's a huge improvement over where I was just a few weeks ago. Sometimes when I'm eating or shortly afterwards I have little clear…

Head and Neck Cancer

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