How long have you survived

pascotty,

Moseying past the 5 year mark.  Just ate some Fritos, life is good, but much different.

Matt

Em11 said:

My husband is two years post

My husband is two years post treatment now.  Two and a half years post diagnosis.  He was stage 4 throat and base of tongue cancer.  He's still skinny as heck, low immune system, fatigues easily, has thick foamy saliva, has to take a water bottle everywhere, struggles a bit when eating, but he does eat.  He eats steak, hamburgers, fish, pasta, pretty much whatever he wants.  But that didn't come until at least a year post treatment.  It might take him two hours to eat a meal, but he eats it and enjoys it.  We take trips now and go to a lot of concerts and theater. It's best to sit on the end of row seats, in case he has a coughing episode and needs to step outside without disturbing the rest of the audience.  And we have found it best to stay in hotels that have room service, because then he can order in and eat in the room if he's not feeling up to going out.  But we just went to New Orleans recently and he did eat in several restaurants.  It was great to see him chowing down on some beignets at breakfast and crawfish gumbo at lunch.  He even indulges in a glass of wine a few nights a week, which with him being somewhat of a connoisseur prior to diagnosis, he was miserable thinking he'd never be able to do that again.  But we're living.  Living well, even.  Life is going on!

My husband is still L-I-V-I-N!

With Throat cancer. By the Grace of God still here. Received 2 weeks in the hospital 24 hours a day chemo Cisplatin, Taxotere, and 5 Fluorouracil with several week spaces in between to let my blood count and me recover for the next one. Then had 35 radiation treatments with chemo beginning of it middle and at the end. I was one month shy of my 5-year mark since finishing treatments for my original cancer and got a sore spot on the bottom of the left side of the tongue. Biopsy confirmed cancer. Surgery to remove on June 26, 2018, and ENT Doc has gotten clear margins. Healed up well and quickly everything good again. Life is good and I have adapted to a new normal which includes the stuff we cancer survivors deal with such as dry mouth, neuropathy in the hands and feet, some tinnitus and some other odds and ends but feeling well.

Diagnosed in February of 2009.  Have paid a price for survival, but well worth it.  My heart goes out to all of those and their loved ones who can't say the same thing.

I was diagnosed with throat cancer in late November of 2012. Went through treatment starting in 2013 so it is about 7 years. Also had 2 cancer episodes since then a small spot on my tongue removed with clear margins and lymph node cancer last year. Celebrating with the ones that are still here and mourning the ones with their families who have passed-Take Care-God Bless all-Russ

11 years so far

I was first diagnosed with SCC (Nov '19) most likely from the left palintine tonsil. Original tumor never found. Literally almost 100 lymph nodes removed on the left side of my neck (Dec '19) They ultimately removed the left sternocleidomastoid muscle because it had so much tumor burden. Surgeon took other lymph nodes from behind the left ear to along the has to down the net to along the top of left shoulder. There was also one fat encapsulated tumor on top of left shoulder. After surgery the doctor told me that I had "many" cancerous lymph nodes across the top of my left chest muscle and all down into my armpit (Axillary). That he couldn't remove due to lymphadenopathy. Thanks!  Literally the day I was scheduled to begin radiation therapy, that doctor instead sent me to a oncological hematologist to get my cancers DNA sequenced. As a result my radiation was cancelled and instead got immunotherapy with Keytruda (Feb '20) as a monotheraphy. After two infusions, I had a Pet-ct... ALL evidence of disease was gone and obviously no signs of metastatic disease either. I've done a total not 19 infusions over a year and had a second Pet-ct that was also clean. Yesterday Feb '21 was my last infusion. Now I'm on monitoring blood work every 3 months and new Pet- t scans every 6 months. I feel lucky I had a easier treatment course than the traditional chemo an radiation but the side effects to immunotherapy were pretty tough too. Now I'm just absolutely FREAKING out. I just wait?? I'm a fixer, a fighter...I need something to do, even if it's suffering from side effects. Waiting is horrible and so damn terrifying. I'll let you know how it goes.

abbimom said:

still here
I am 10 years post treatment. I had squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue and it metastisized to the lymphnodes in my neck.

was yours HPV positive? new here and don't know where to post to ask who had base tongue squamous cell carcinoma that was HPV NEGATIVE, I am HPV negative and don't read a lot on it except not good

Finished treatments for cancer on the lingual tonsil a a few lymph node (30 radiation and 6 chemo treatments) in December and go for first pet scan March 20th wish me the best but Im feeling stronger each day now and not ready to give up other than my love for food is no longer there and the appetite is poor after treatment.

Good luck everyone

Diagnosed fall 2008 at 40 yoa after persistent swollen neck node. 

Early November 35 Rads + weekly Chemo 7 weeks

Back to work January 5, 2009

Zero long or late stage side effects but for manageable dry mouth.

For the vast majority, there is a "normal" life after the hell you are going through!

John