constipation

Radiation Oncologist

I did not like my husband's radiology oncologist at all!!  I felt he outright lied to us on more than one occasion.  We were unable to speak to medical staff when we had concerns.  At one point, medical decisions were delegated to the office manager who had NO medical training!!  We had it out right in the middle of the waiting room (because they REFUSED to make an appointment) - until his staff called hospital security to escort me out.  The security encouraged me to make a formal complaint with the hospital - that it was not the first time something like that had happened.  My husband did not want me to "make a scene".  I never walked back in the building during the remainder of his treatments.

That being said, my husband was NED for 5 years after initial treatment.  His tumor ran from the top of his ear down his entire throat and was wrapped around his larynx.  The doctor got it all.  His "bedside manner" was the worst!  But I must give credit were credit is due.  Thank goodness for the medical oncologist across the street who is just the very best!

Husband depended on Miralax, with great success.  

This journey can be so taxing when it seems it should not have to be that way.  

Crystal

Chemo?

Have you had Cisplatin?  That can cause serious constipation.  My husband struggled with it from day one of chemo.  Now he still struggles a bit, but it's from the oxy.  He is one week out from treatment.  Good luck!

Constipation

Hi

This is what I used and drink plenty of water little and often.

Molaxole 13.8g sachets in water 2 or 3 a day and senacot tablets before bed it works for me every time after Cisplatin chemo & when using pain meds. 

Radiation never gave me constipation or nausea just burning near the end.

Is there Oncology nurses there to look after your day to day requirements?  

Linda C. said:

I have one nurse I see during

I have one nurse I see during my radiation treatment.  However it was the doctor who gave me my first prescription so I do need to see him.  I believe my constipation was caused by the pain meds I was on after my PEG tube surgery.  I was not healed from that when they started the radiation treatments so there was some overlap there.  I am taking Senocot daily.  I am still having nausea which the doctor says is not from radiation.  He is wrong... but it's not the first time.

Like you said

I'm not trying to make it sound like your reaction should be the same as mine, nor your experience the same as mine.  That being said:

Until the last week or so of radiation treatment, I couldn't feel much due to the radiation.  I had to deal with the loss of saliva, the foamy stuff that some people get when the salivary glands have gone away, and eventually the skin on my neck really did change and sort-of fall-off in bits (in my case this was short-lived, easily managed, and not a big deal).

The reason I am answering is because of the constipation.  Man, that was rough.  In my case it was an anti-nausea medication that everyone kept telling me to take to get over the stomach upset I was having due to the constipation.  As soon as I quit taking that (well, within a couple of days) the constipation went away and never retured.

However, and as a cautionary note to my tale, I never took any pain medications. So I never got that pain-med constipation.  Yes, I hurt, but pain medications make me nauseated and I hate being nauseated and would rather hurt <to a point>.   ...and I didn't hurt much.  The worst it ever got was about like untreated strep throat and that only lasted four or five days and only when I swallowed except for the day of my last radiation treatment when I had a fairly constant "1" on the pain scale and a "6" when I swallowed.

I take that back.  During the constipation I experienced some very serious pain in the bathroom.  That would have made me take pain meds if it had continued.

So, I know that my experience is NOT your experience, I just thought you might want to see if they are giving you something that the very first side-effect listed is constipation.  It was for me and removing it from my medications list made life much better for me.

Oh, I should also mention that I had no PEG and no surgery for anything; no port, nothing.  I saw the radio-oncologist once a week and she looked down my throat with a flashlight and then said, "Hmmm" and "You seem to be responding," and the like.  I didn't expect her to do much else once she designed the treatment plan and it was entered into the computer.  In fact, I really didn't expect much from the ENT, the Radio-Oncologist, or the Oncologist once treatments started.  I didn't get a lot, either!  

Everyone was VERY kind, but the only real medical interaction I had with anyone were the infusion nurses who would intervene for me and serve as a communication link to the Oncologist.