Hello I am new to this group

donfoo

Congrats!

Getting thru rads is a huge milestone. You may be already feeling better or at least not worse. The glow of rads keeps giving for some and it may be a bit before you feel the road up. You're on the recovery road now!

Bart T

HANG IN THERE WILPAT

Sorry for your troubles, congtats on finishing rads, and welcome to this board. I’m just about at the two-year mark from my last radiation for treatment of tongue cancer. I also had surgery prior to the radiation. As you’ve observed everybody has a different experience, and every timeline seems to be different. Probably about the only thing you can count on is that you will improve. In my case the process took a lot longer than I expected, so I was disappointed in the timeline, but overall, I’ve done pretty well, so I guess a little patience pays off.

Taste came back in fairly short order, partially within the first two weeks of finishing radiation, and almost fully within less than two months. Appetite took a lot longer to return, I’d say it was probably at least several months before I had any desire for food, and it was about three months before I returned to a fairly normal diet of solid foods. 

Prior to my cancer, I enjoyed food a lot, probably too much. Appetite did eventually return, and for several months after my appetite returned, I found I was able to eat as much as I wanted without gaining weight. That heavenly state didn’t last long, and now I’m back to having to watch what I eat. I’ve gained all of my weight back, and then some, and now I’m trying to lose it again. 

I can eat almost anything I want, but do find a fair number of foods I no longer enjoy; chocolates, most fresh fruits (especially acetic ones like pineapple), solid meats and fishes, anything spicy. I can’t drink any alcohol as I find it irritates my mouth. 

As to pain, that too will pass. In my case it again took longer that I bargained for. At about 6 weeks after radiation, I was still having significant pain. I was taking as many as six oxycontins four times a day with little relief of my pain. I went to see a pain management doctor who wanted to put me on methadone. At that point, I decided stop the meds and just tough it out.(At least stopping the meds enabled me to drive again, and that made things seem much more normal). I would say that it was about three months before the pain was at a reasonable enough level that I was able to enjoy many of my normal activities. 

As to dry mouth, frankly I’m still waiting for that to clear up, and I’m still waiting to find a product that actually helps. All I can say, is eventually, you will find your own path to coping with it. 

 

Bottom line is things will get better and that needs to be your focus. For me, the period immediately after completing radiation was probably my worst time, so hang in there. I know I went through a period of time where I didn’t believe I would get better, but I did, and you will too. My wish for you is that it happens quickly for you, but even if it doesn’t go as fast as you want or expect, you will get through it and you will get better, and soon enough, it will merely be a memory.