Job Training - Dive in or Sit Back

MizBama
MizBama Member Posts: 3
in Head and Neck Cancer #1

My DH was just dx with SCC at the BOT - he's scheduled for surgery on Friday. The good news is that the ENT says the area is small, so we are (hopefully) not looking at losing any or much of the tongue itself. 

If recovery from surgery goes well, he would be starting rad around 6-8 weeks from now. If the surgery doesn't go well, intense rad would start immediately.

DH was planning on starting an 8 week class course in 10 days - so he would be on the tail end of surgical recovery and won't have started rad therapy. 

I know everyone's recovery is different, so there is no way to KNOW, but are we crazy for thinking he should still go forward with the course? He won't be working, otherwise, and I think having a goal and a mental task would be enormously helpful in keeping focused on the big life picture rather than just the cancer. 

Or am I being way to optomistic about how he's going to feel after surgery?  The big issue is that the course is quite expensive, so getting into it and then quitting would be a nasty financial hit. Upside is the potential of a much better paying job at the end.

Comments

  • Sprint Car Dude
    Sprint Car Dude Member Posts: 181
    #2
    Doable

    I think its doable with the given information. Chemo and Radiation usually take a few weeks to catch up with you. The only thing to also consider is if he will need any pre-dental work done before his radiation treatments. This could throw a wrench into the process.  Just my opinion.  I'm 6 months out from stage 4 ssc. T1/N3/M0.  Good Luck.

  • Kapital
    Kapital Member Posts: 52 Member
    edited May 2017 #3
          Of course, no one can

          Of course, no one can predict the future, however, if he won't be starting chemo/rads for 6-8 weeks, then he can probably forge ahead with the class. If he is a pretty healthy guy, the area is "small" and they aren't anticipating a radical neck dissection, then the odds are in his favor towards the class. 

         My husband had stage IV tonsil cancer two years ago. He had a tonsillectomy and didn't miss a beat. He also continued to work throughout his treatments (chemo/rads) and felt working gave him something else to focus on. It does take a few weeks for the effects of radiation to kick in, so you have a little extra on your side with the timeline. 

          Everyone is different. Only you two know your husbands tolerance levels. In our case, the class would have been fine, but for others, maybe not. Good luck with treatment and your decision. BTW, I think being optimistic is helpful in so many ways. 

  • SuzJ
    SuzJ Member Posts: 446 Member
    #4
    you should

    just make it, as Sprint car dude said, depends on dental work

    I remember being told they give you a 2 week rest period after all the testing and mask making before they start, then you have 2 maybe 3 weeks before the tiredness hits

  • MizBama
    MizBama Member Posts: 3
    #5
    Thank you

    Thank you all for the words of advice and encouragement. :) 

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