PEG placement and radiation treatments

ac

Hi,

Just an update and some questions on PEG and radiation. I've just completed 1/7 weeks of concurrent Cisplatin and radiation last week. Needless to say I was totally sick but feel better this week.

Because I was unable to get a PEG installed prior to treatment, I am now considering getting one before the treatment gets too rough further out. I don't feel like I need one now though. But I'm starting to feel a little nervous because I have 3 rounds of Cisplatin following the concurrent chemo radiation.

If you had a PEG installed in the middle of radiation treatments, did you have to stop radiation to allow the body to heal from the PEG procedure?

Please also let me know where you had radiation treatments on. Mine is nasopharynx so it is just above the throat.

I will check with the doctors. But wish to compare notes with people who may have undergone a similar situation. Thank you.

Hondo

Hi ac

Good to see you posting again. I did not have the PEG installed during my treatment but if I had to do it over again I would have it installed first before anything else. Now 6 years later I am thinking about getting a PEG tube to help me put on some weight. Question on the PEG, I don’t believe you need to stop treatment as the PEG is an outpatient procedure.

If you ask me my friend get the PEG installed and save your self a lot of pain from trying to get enough food in through your mouth.

Wishing you well
Hondo

buzz99

PEG
Buzz had his PEG installed before treatment and we used it for about 6 months. He was totally tube feeding dependent for a solid 4 months. Now we are using it again because a neck abcess is pushing on the airway and causing swallowing difficulty. Go for it. Karen

cwcad

buzz99 said:

PEG
Buzz had his PEG installed before treatment and we used it for about 6 months. He was totally tube feeding dependent for a solid 4 months. Now we are using it again because a neck abcess is pushing on the airway and causing swallowing difficulty. Go for it. Karen

I would get a food peg!!
IF it is an option I would get one. I would have died with out mine. As it was I lost almost half my body weight. Even with a food peg it can be bad. One needs to feed themself or you won't make it through your ordeal. My doctor told me very matter of factly, "More cancer patients die of starvation than they do of my cancer. My was base of tongue stage 4. I cannot say if his comment wa true of false but I do know that it made me gulp ...and get the food port with my wife's urging.

Even if you do not need it... get one! Food and strength will be there when you need it if there is protein in your body. I would never have been able to eat enough food to stay alive . Mine would not go down. but that was me. Others made it through the process and I applaud them for it. I was not able to tough it out.

francma

PEG
I would definitely ask your physician about getting it done now. Being I am a small person my doctor highly recommended prior to tx because he said I would feel too sick to have to do it later on. So do it while you are feeling strong enough. You won't need one at first, this is true, but safe to have it in case you do. In my case, I think being cancer free now I would have died without it. I am still using it and completed my txs 4/18/11.

Fran

ac

Got my PEG
Just an update, I got my PEG last week and didn't have to pause my radiation treatments.

I remember asking my gastro if it was painful and he told me it was "no pain... of course just a little discomfort because it's like being stabbed in the stomach". I guess I only heard the "no pain just a little discomfort" part. Anyway, the pain subsided after 2 or 3 days.

I now feel a little more secure with this insurance. I'm heading into week 4 with chemo this Monday. Thanks for the advice and prayers.

NJR

ac said:

Got my PEG
Just an update, I got my PEG last week and didn't have to pause my radiation treatments.

I remember asking my gastro if it was painful and he told me it was "no pain... of course just a little discomfort because it's like being stabbed in the stomach". I guess I only heard the "no pain just a little discomfort" part. Anyway, the pain subsided after 2 or 3 days.

I now feel a little more secure with this insurance. I'm heading into week 4 with chemo this Monday. Thanks for the advice and prayers.

PEG
Just so you know, even with a PEG it did me no good what so ever as long as I was getting the Cisplatin. I still lost 50lbs because the Ensure coming up through a throat swollen shut has only two other escape routes. Your nose and your tear ducts. It's kind of hard to describe what the world looks like when you are looking through Ensure and nothing burns quite like it.
I know a lot of people swear buy it, but I never used it again after that and quite frankly probably never will. The hard part though is getting them to take it out.

Kent Cass

NJR said:

PEG
Just so you know, even with a PEG it did me no good what so ever as long as I was getting the Cisplatin. I still lost 50lbs because the Ensure coming up through a throat swollen shut has only two other escape routes. Your nose and your tear ducts. It's kind of hard to describe what the world looks like when you are looking through Ensure and nothing burns quite like it.
I know a lot of people swear buy it, but I never used it again after that and quite frankly probably never will. The hard part though is getting them to take it out.

NJR
Sorry to hear about your nausea problems w/Cisplatin, and the negative it became with the PEG. Not sure about the physical possibility of your throat being swollen shut so that you couldn't vomit the Ensure thru the mouth, especially if you were ingesting anything thru the mouth while this was going on, what with the way our pharynx/mouth areas are constructed, so I do wonder about it- majorly swollen tongue? Were you able to use the PEG when your chemo w/Cisplatin ended?

We are all different, NJR. Some have had serious nausea problems with chemo, but my issues were minor (Extreme Cisplatin regime w/FU5) in comparison. With the Emend and Compazine, and adjustments to my sleep sessions in bed, I only had a couple minor bouts with the heaves. And for me, like a number of others, my G-tube was critical, as my only Nutrition for some 7 weeks was thru the feeding tube. And, yes, I still lost some 18% of my body weight, but so it goes with H&N treatment- this is C, and that's just about as major a hand as anyone gets dealt. Sorry to hear you had a negative experience with your PEG due to the vomits.

kcass

Hondo

ac said:

Got my PEG
Just an update, I got my PEG last week and didn't have to pause my radiation treatments.

I remember asking my gastro if it was painful and he told me it was "no pain... of course just a little discomfort because it's like being stabbed in the stomach". I guess I only heard the "no pain just a little discomfort" part. Anyway, the pain subsided after 2 or 3 days.

I now feel a little more secure with this insurance. I'm heading into week 4 with chemo this Monday. Thanks for the advice and prayers.

Hi Andrew
Glad to hear it all went well with getting the PEG tube; about your fourth week in to radiation you will be glad you have it. Also during your treatment don’t forget to stretch your Jaw during the day so you don’t lose any motion in it.

Take care
Hondo

Dan Garrett

PEG
My radiation treatments were around my entire throat area and I did my best to avoid having the PEG but in the sixth week of my radiation treatment my throat became to closed to swallow. I was told in the beginning that the PEG was inevitable and they were right. It is annoying (I felt like I was tethered) but is necessary for your recovery. I lost 60 pounds during treatments and without it I would not been done for.