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Security Alert
Has anyone else received a "security alert" when signing in to CSN? Should it be a concern?
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Maybe useful info
For those of you on Medicare who have found that additional scans will not be covered there may be a solution. Medicare recently approved low dose CT lung scans for people on Medicare, under 77 years old and with a history of smoking. You must have smoked within the last 15 years and smoked on average of one pack per day…
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OK, Stanford Medical wants me to speak and show the SLP's how to make Products Laryngectomees need
Ok I went to Stanford Medical yesterday 430 miles round trip to have my TEP Prosthesis changed [so I can talk]. This one lasted five months and might have gone just a little longer, and they have been only lasting two months. So once again it is time to certify and recertify the SLP's who work with TEP's. They have me…
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Trying to hang in there
To catch folks up, since I haven't posted here that much in the past 6 months or so, I was treated for Stg. IV SCC HPV+ in my left tonsil and soft palate in mid-2012. I had chemoradiation with cisplatin. I was all clear until late October of this year, when pneumonia revealed a mass in my right lung. It's the same cancer…
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Another newbie
I want to start by saying thank you to everyone who posts on this site. I've been lurking for a few weeks now and have already learned so much. I am 'the wife'. Paul was diagnosed with Tonsil cancer, stage 4b SCC in September. Neck dissection followed in October and Cetuximab and radio kicked off two weeks ago. The…
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Hello
Just realized I haven't checked in on everyone in months. After my mom died in August, of cancer, I was just so numb and sad I couldn't think straight. Three weeks ago Jim's dog had severe pancreatitis and was diagnosed with diabetes. Diabetes in dogs is very expensive to treat and I can't afford it so as with my mom and…
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blast from the past!
Hello everyone! It has been SO very long since I've been on here. I had some computer issues, got rid of said computer and now I am accessing thru my iPad. I've missed you all and hope you are all well. So far I'm NED, yay! Please know I never ever go a day without thinking of you all and thankful for all that you did to…
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Current patient and wanted to introduce myself
Hello all, I am new to the group and am posting my situation in case someone has a similar situation and has questions. I was diagnosed with stage iv SCC N-0 March 2014. I had surgery to remove the tumor in my sinus cavity and my soft palette was removed with some hard palette, due to personal feelings about quality of…
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New caregiver need advise
Hello to all, I am new to this entire process. My husband was just diagnosed with 2.5cm mass on base of tongue. He also has a spot on lung found by accident when is CT scan was done. The surgeon said no surgery because it is too large. We meet with the radiologist on Tuesday. What questions should we ask about his…
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Friend that refuses treatment
I would like to know answers to some important topics. I am now a 13 month survivor of stage 4 tongue based squamus cell cancer. A life log friend was recently diagnosed with stage 2-3 of the same thing. I completed the full operation/chemo/radiation treatment. My friend just decided to refuse normal treatment and go to a…
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So many new people...
Just reading the posts over the last week or so, it seems that there is a whole new "class" of folks lined up to receive treatment or are just beginning their treatments. I just wanted to say I'm thinking of ALL of you. It is such a rough and rocky road, but you will make it. My husband and I have hit the 6 month post…
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I found this product.....
via a friend who's dad is going through throat cancer. Granted it's not full of calories, BUT it's a protein powder that comes in flavors other than vanilla and chocolate.....it actually comes "unflavored" so can be added to anything that could use a boost in protein. You could get 21 grams of protein in a glass of water .…
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Day 1 in the books
and I am so proud of my husband. Radiation and Chemo (cisplatin) done like a champ. It was such a long day, and I am so glad my parents were here to get my kids from school and make them dinner because we didn't get home until late. I cried a lot today, but my husband was so strong. He doesn't feel any different so…
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Freaking out!!
My husband went for his first post treatment pet scan and we are scheduled to meet with our ENT on Friday to discuss the results. This afternoon, his oncologist called to tell my husband that he has seen the pet scan and the BOT in the tongue looks very, very good...small spot there but it may be inactive/dead and that the…
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Surgery in the books
Well surgery was on the 10th and went as well as could be expected. At least that is word on the street as I was still drooling and staring for several hours after the operation. Medical team rocked and after 8 hours sent me to ICU for some needed rest LOL. Nurses and staff were all so professional making me as comfortable…
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Update on Mom
I don't know who remembers me but I posted on here for the first time last year when my mom first found out she had head and neck cancer and had moved to her lymph nodes. Well she finished treatment. Terrible side effects. She finished first week of September with 12 chemo treatments and 34 radiation treatments. She can't…
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Auction quilt UPDATED
So I posted the wallhanging/quilt in an earlier post. Here is a picture of my husband and I with Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly - who is a survivor of H&N SCC. He was kind enough to sign the quilt and it was auctioned off and brought in $150. Very emotional evening for my husband and I. Barbara
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New to this, but getting experience real quick
Hi to all out there and my sincere best wishes to the same I have only recently joined this elite club and have paid my membership dues in full. When I first heard the nasty "C" word, it most certainly came as far more than just a shock. It was a smack upside the head of the most gargantuan proportions. I very quickly…
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Rad/Chemo starts next week
My husband is ready. I am scared. So where I left off was that my husband had stage 1 (T1N0M0) oral tongue cancer that had not spread to any lymph nodes. There was perinueral invasion so we were deciding between careful monitoring and further treatment. On Nov. 19th, we spent 9 hours at doctor's offices at MD Anderson and…
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Physical Therapy?
I was wondering if anyone has had any PT done to help ease the tense muscles on your shoulder from a neck dissection? I was going to ask the doctor about it when I see him next week. Ibuprofen helps some but not that much. I use biofreeze a lot that helps some. But just sitting in the chair watching tv I can feel the…
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MOUTH WASH
When I started my radation ,I joined a trial study on different mouth washes,to numb you so you could eat. The study had 3 different washes. I was luckey and the one I got worked.!! It would num my throath about 2hrs. I don"t know if you can get it but it was great. It is doxepin hydrochloride oral solution,usp…
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Submandibular gland swollen
I've searched everywhere trying to find some answer, since my family isn't particularly supportive, they would prefer to bury their heads. Anyways, I am 30 years old, female. About a year ago I noticed a gland on the left side of my throat under my jaw was swollen. i left it alone for a few months, until it started growing…
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Happy Thanksgiving!
Wishing you all a very happy Thanksgiving! I know that I personally have an awful lot to be thankful for this year (and every year!) I am truly thankful for all of my family here on CSN! I hope you all have a great day with friends and family! Love you all!!
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A big scare...and lessons learned
So the main lesson learned is that you need to transition to real food by mouth S-L-O-W-L-Y. For the past month I've been helping my husband try to eat some foods by mouth again. Mostly I've been doing pureed soups, yogurt, applesauce etc. Well today he took the nurse practitioners that work in his clinic out to lunch for…
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Filling for cavity post-radiation
Hi, I am almost two weeks post-radiation and require a filling for a cavity. I have read about needing antibiotics for extensive dental work such as extractions, but haven't seen anything about precautions for a filling. My dentist thinks I shouldn't need any antibiotics. Of course, my radiation oncologist's office isn't…
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scan results
Both head & neck and chest CTs were negative. Don't think there will ever come a time that I don't cry for happy when I hear those results. The anxiety is so bottled up and just explodes. Prayers answered thank you all.
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ROLLCALL 2015 - UPDATED NOV. 1, 2015
ROLL CALL 2015 Roll Call is dedicated to the memory of HAWVET (JOHNNY) who’s curiosity to know and to share a little bit about members of the Head and Neck Form inspired him to start and run this thread (2008 thru 2014). Thank You. First off, please feel free to Enroll (name, town, state, dx) or Check-In whenever you see…
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Sudden sensorineural hearing loss
A few weeks ago my husband was fitted with hearing aids and things were GREAT! He was hearing better than he had in years...or at least since the Cisplatin accelerated his hearing loss. He was no longer asking people to repeat everything, no longer leaning in to hear people. The bluetooth directly to his mobile phone was…
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Nasopharynx is....
....clear! Whoo Hoo....Yippie Ki Yi.....Woopie.....Hallaluah....!!!! Dr. called a little while ago with the biopsy results. He took several biopsies of the nasopharynx, all of them were clear. Ended up with 3 nodes with cancer, not just the two that we saw on the PET scan.....one is excapsulated, so that means chemo again…
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What Cancer cannot do - UPDATE
Am posting this for everyone...and especially for those on the board here who are in the middle of their treatment. Big fundraiser coming up for the cancer center where my husband works and was treated, so I made this wallhanging to be auctioned off. I figured the person who buys it can use the outside rectangles as a…