phlegm

mrbmx70
mrbmx70 Member Posts: 7
in Head and Neck Cancer #1

It's been almost a month post rads & chemo and the phlegm is still here and now it is much thicker and very hard to get rid of. Seems to be more so in my nasal area now and seems to be getting darker yellow in color. Has anyone experienced this? Is it normal? Should I be getting a hold of my doctor?

Thanks

Tony

Comments

  • TracyLynn72
    TracyLynn72 Member Posts: 839
    #2
    Mine was

    very thick and yellowish right at the month out timeframe.  Then literally a couple of days later it was just GONE.  It just went away very quickly.  I know everyone is different, but mine stuck around for 3-4 weeks and was thick, looked like sinus infection color, and was horrible.  I kept up my baking soda/salt/water rinse all during the day and it finally just stopped.  I hope yours goes away very quickly!

  • CivilMatt
    CivilMatt Member Posts: 4,724 Member
    #3
    I say normal

    Tony,

    You are only a month out of the easy bake oven” and if I remember correctly you push yourself pretty hard.  Your phlegm issues could have been many of us at one month post.  Unless, there is something obviously wrong, you sound normal.  At 16 months post I do not have that much phlegm, but I can really hack up a lugie (sp).

    This should gradually get better, that way you make room for other things.

    Matt

  • fishmanpa
    fishmanpa Member Posts: 1,227 Member
    #4
    Patience

    I had it pretty bad for about 3 weeks or so. I could have taken stock in Puffs! But like Tracy, it just quit within a couple of days and hasn't been an issue since. Hang in there!

    "T"

  • Ruben and Jude
    Ruben and Jude Member Posts: 155
    #5
    Give it time

    Sounds par for the course. I don't think I've ever seen so much phlegm in my entire nursing career than in the 2-3 weeks Ruben had it. Then, in a 1-2 day period, it almost came to a complete stop. I pushed a lot of fluids on him, as I had done for many of my patients with the same problem. Make sure you're getting a minimum of 1500 ml of WATER per day. It will help to thin it out, but it doesn't stop it. Once your throat tissues stop having an inflammatory reaction by tring to coat themselves, the phlegm should subside.

    Every little tid bit of info helps, sometimes!  Wink

  • Tim6003
    Tim6003 Member Posts: 1,514 Member
    #6
    Ruben and Jude said:

    Give it time

    Sounds par for the course. I don't think I've ever seen so much phlegm in my entire nursing career than in the 2-3 weeks Ruben had it. Then, in a 1-2 day period, it almost came to a complete stop. I pushed a lot of fluids on him, as I had done for many of my patients with the same problem. Make sure you're getting a minimum of 1500 ml of WATER per day. It will help to thin it out, but it doesn't stop it. Once your throat tissues stop having an inflammatory reaction by tring to coat themselves, the phlegm should subside.

    Every little tid bit of info helps, sometimes!  Wink

    Always keep your doctor updated ....but

    It all sounds normal, too normal in fact it brings back those memories. Ugh.  The thickness 6 weeks out and I just remember saying to my wife one morning "I don't know how much longer I can take this" ...turns out a week later almost overnight it seemed I woke up and it was much better, then quickly got MUCH BETTER really fast....I was so delighted and happy.

     

    It will happen. You will get there ...hang on, the dry mouth is next (beats the snot in the throat hands down...lol) ...hope you did not mind the humor my fellow warrior friend.

    Tim

  • Tim6003
    Tim6003 Member Posts: 1,514 Member
    #7
    Ruben and Jude said:

    Give it time

    Sounds par for the course. I don't think I've ever seen so much phlegm in my entire nursing career than in the 2-3 weeks Ruben had it. Then, in a 1-2 day period, it almost came to a complete stop. I pushed a lot of fluids on him, as I had done for many of my patients with the same problem. Make sure you're getting a minimum of 1500 ml of WATER per day. It will help to thin it out, but it doesn't stop it. Once your throat tissues stop having an inflammatory reaction by tring to coat themselves, the phlegm should subside.

    Every little tid bit of info helps, sometimes!  Wink

    Always keep your doctor updated ....but

    It all sounds normal, too normal in fact it brings back those memories. Ugh.  The thickness 6 weeks out and I just remember saying to my wife one morning "I don't know how much longer I can take this" ...turns out a week later almost overnight it seemed I woke up and it was much better, then quickly got MUCH BETTER really fast....I was so delighted and happy.

     

    It will happen. You will get there ...hang on, the dry mouth is next (beats the snot in the throat hands down...lol) ...hope you did not mind the humor my fellow warrior friend.

    Tim

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