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Head and Neck Cancer

Step-daughter of NPC Patient
Hello everyone- my name is Reagen and I'm new. I'm new to this site, but more than that, I'm new to the world of cancer. My-step father was diagnosed with Nasopharyngeal carcinoma yesterday. He goes in for a PET scan Monday to find out what stage it is. I'll update this post when we find out. I'm unsure of what to expect…
TEP Information
I had a TEP installed Wednesday and I'm having a bit of trouble. I'm producing a lot of mucus, and I have to clean the TEP about once an hour or I can't speak. I'm hoping this is temporary, but I would appreciate any estimates on how long I can expect this to last. I know from reading this site that everyone has a…
major sweats/fatigue post 8 weeks
My husband is 8 weeks post treatment, (7 weeks Rad and Chemo) and suffering greatly, he has been in bed more than not, severe pain in jaw, neck, and sinus. The last three days his bed is so wet you would think a pitcher of water was poured on him. His fatigue is so severe he can barely lift his head to talk to me, anyone…
How long does it take for the Erbitux rash to go away?
Hi All, I'm 5 weeks out from my last Erbitux infusion and completed my last Proton radiation 3 weeks ago. My face is still very red from the Erbitux, the acne part of it cleared up easily but my face is so red. If i stay in a completely dark room and stay out of any sunlight it fades a little, but as soon as i go into a…
Consultation on Friday... questions
Hi Everyone, My husband has his first consultation with the medical and radiation oncologists on Friday. What are some questions we should be asking? We have a notebook and have written a few things down. He wants to avoid cisplatin if possible due to the risk of hearing loss and neuropathy. As a musician the hearing loss…
Partial Glossectomy?
New to the site. Wondering if anyone can give me any info on what to expect with a partial glossectomy & removal of lymph nodes. My husband was diagnosed with base of the tongue cancer in January 2012. He had 40 radiation treatments and 8 rounds of chemo (erbitux). They thought they had gotten the cancer, but it has…
Husband diagnosed with SCC head and neck
i just read a comment and it's true: the club no one wants to join. Lol! My husband is 55, healthy, non smoker, runner of 5k's was diagnosed with stage IV SCC in one lymph node. Needless to say we were in shock. He found the enlarged lymph node by accident while shaving. We are thankful to God for that miracle otherwise we…
Mother newly Diag. SCC - Base of Tongue, Input please!!
Hello! My perfect mother was diagnosed with Squamous Cell Carc last week after complaints of throat pain for 2 months and a subsequent CT scan and Biopsy. "They" say it's very early and we are awaiting the PET scan. Everyone seems to be SUPER cheery about her prognosis and as if it is no big deal - which is GREAT. Given my…
Partial Glossectomy (1/2 tongue replacement) and Dentures
For those that have been following along. I finally got my teeth......it was not insurance that covered although I will continue to fight them. I ended up taking out a loan. Is there any one who had a partial glossectomy and dentures? Wondering how you're able to eat. I am having a hard time. First with the dentures…
Chemo help
Mar 26, 2017 - 5:22 pm Hey All. any help would be Hey All. any help would be appreciated. Tomorrow my husband goes back to the clinic to see if he can receive the second dose of Cisplatin. This was supposed to happen last week. I know I've mentioned severa times that his kidneys are really taking a beating from the chemo.…
And so it begins..
I have found the waiting around to be the worst part, waiting for appointments, waiting for results, waiting, always waiting. Back in December, I had, what I thought, was an ear ache with some pretty damn sore lymph nodes. So with my insurance, I have teledoc, handy for the stuff you don't want to trek to the Drs office…
Ringing in Ears
I did a search and it did not find anything on this topic so thought I would ask. I am 3 months out from chemo and last week I stated to get ringing in my left ear. I went to the ENT and an audiologist said I have hearing loss in high frequency in left ear which is where I have the ringing. But since I do not have any…
Submandicular glands
Hello all, April 1 will be my one year anniversary of my first surgery for tongue cancer. I'm doing well and have my first post-second treatment PET scan in 2 weeks. I had both glands removed with each of my 2 neck dissections. For those who got their saliva back, did you have one or both glands removed? I can't see how…
5 Year Anniversary
Today marked the 5 year anniversary of my husband's surgery to remove his jaw and a partial neck dissection. I actually got through most of the morning before I realized what day it was. I found myself periodically reliving what I was doing at that time of day. In fact, as I type this, he would have still been in surgery…
Stinky poop
I am 3 months post. I did 35 IMRT and 7 Carbo/Taxol. About 3 weeks ago I stopped living on nutrition shakes and began the transition to real food. That has gone mostly well, taste is coming in fits and starts but is coming. Dry mouth ranges from annoying to total. During treatment I had severe constipation, got over that,…
Recommendations for oral surgeon familiar with H&N cancer
Hi all, wondering if anyone here can recommend an oral surgeon familiar with operating on people that are post H&N cancer radiation treatment. My upcoming issue is Tori bone growths on the bottom of my mouth. This May, I'll be 5 years post treatment and I'm a good two to three years out I think, but I'm wanting to do…
Allow myself to introduce..... myself
Hi Gang; Husband of other new member "Chicklette" here. As she mentioned in her "Introducing Myself" post, I have recently received a diagnosis of HPV+ Squamous Cell Carcinoma. I have the classic lump in the neck which I noticed while shaving back in December. When it didn't go away (I had a cold at the time) I went to get…
Sad News
I saw on Facebook a couple of days ago that Joe Cortney (jcortney on here)passed away. I sent a message to his wife...she said he passed the end of January. He was a rock for me when I had the recurrence last year....a positive and very humorous guy. P
Looking For Advice
Hi All - I am at a point in my health scare issue that I could really use some advice. I am a 27-year old male, who for the most part would consider himself fairly healthy (used to work out 3-4 times a week, ate mostly greens, and would only occassionally drink on weekends), I was a smokeless tobacco user on and off for 7…
Introducing Myself
Hello, Everone, I've been lurking for a few weeks now hoping I would not have a reason to join. However, tonight we got the phone call confirming that my husband has SCC HPV+ with an unknown primary. It's been around two months since my husband found a lump on his neck while shaving. (Seems that a lot of these cancers are…
NED!
Next month April 24th will be my 4 year anniversary of completing treatment for Stage IVa Head and Neck cancer. As of today, I'm NED! (no evidence of disease). There are some physiological issues with swallowing that are side effects of the surgery and treatment but all is well. It just means I have to keep on doing the…
Recurrent SCC with brain met
Hello everyone!! My husband's story started last August when he had, what looked like, a small canker sore under his tongue. We saw his first ENT in September, by then, the tumor had grown to about an inch in size. It had become very painful for him to eat anything but very soft food. The ENT did a biopsy which came back…
Has anyone done 25 sessions at 50 gy (or close to it)? Just RT, no chemo.
Trying to mentally prepare for how this treatment will go. Any insight is appreciated. Thank you.
Good News NED
It has been a long time since I have been on. I went for my 5 year CT scan and Lung Xray and all is good. I am now 5 years without any return of the cancer. Feeling blessed and miss not having spoken with any or you for so long.
Need info on thyroid problems and "cures" after radiation/chemo
I'm 2 1/2 years out and generally doing well. But others in my support group report what sounds like hypothyroidism after reaching about 4 years out. Has anyone found ways to strengthen the thyroid before the problem develops? Thanks and good health to all!
VIETNAM VETS AND ESOPHAGEAL CANCER
LOOKING FOR VIETNAM VETS WHO HAD/HAVE ESOPHAGEAL CANCER. MY HUSBAND PASSED AWAY ON MAY 30-06 FROM EC. WAS DENIED COMPENSATION FROM THE VA AS AGENT ORANGE RELATED. I HAVE APPEALED. VETS, WE NEED TO GET EC ON THE PRESUMPTIVE LIST!! ACCORDING TO THE STUDIES, EC WAS NEVER EVEN CONSIDERED. SOME CASES HAVE BEEN APPROVED, WHY NOT…
Chemo or not to chemo
Anyone here not elect to have chemo with their radiation with stage iV HPV neck/throat cancer? Or elect to have reduced chemo?
Dental Problems
I am having major dental problems three years post treatment for throat cancer. Already had several crowns and several fillings. Is it true that you have to have hyperbaric oxygen treatment before having teeth removed. Any dental help I can get will be appreciated. My teeth were not very good at beginning of radiation,…
Osteoradionecrosis - trouble with area around extracted teeth.
In 2003 I had Stage 4 Tonsil Cancer and went through both chemotherapy and radiation. The side effects were the usual dry mouth and thyroid problems but since 2014 I have had to have several teeth removed. I underwent the Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy before the first teeth were removed. In January I had another tooth removed…
Started as salivary gland stage lV.. can someone please dumb these results down for me.. my dads res

Head and Neck Cancer

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