surgery

I have been diagnosed with stage 2 throat cancer. I have already taken preop tests for surgery. Does anyone have any info on what the surgery intails?

I'm not sure what kind of surgery you are having; you mention laser in another text.........is the surgery just in the throat or is there lymph node involvement???  I imagine you will have a hospital stay; but I really think you need to call your doctor and request information.  You are entitled to have a complete explanation of what is being done and a chance to ask questions, so don't be "put off' with the fact the doctor is busy!!

Once you know what surgery is involved, we will all do our best to answer your questions you have..........

Good luck!.................Steph

Jr, you can read my other texts and see what happens with my type of throat cancer, but yours could be different.  But like was said earlier, you should receive a specific explanation from your doctor, and if the surgery being discussed with you is serious, GET A SECOND OPINION.  Sometimes that is what the doctor is giving you is their opinion.  You may find there are other options and it's your body and your life.  My doctor ended up being 100% correct in his diagnosis and I'm not trying to paint an ugly picture....but it happens. 

Good luck to you in whatever course you take. 

 

On 11/6/2008 Mike1sc wrote:

Jr, you can read my other texts and see what happens with my type of throat cancer, but yours could be different.  But like was said earlier, you should receive a specific explanation from your doctor, and if the surgery being discussed with you is serious, GET A SECOND OPINION.  Sometimes that is what the doctor is giving you is their opinion.  You may find there are other options and it's your body and your life.  My doctor ended up being 100% correct in his diagnosis and I'm not trying to paint an ugly picture....but it happens. 

Good luck to you in whatever course you take. 

Ty for repling, Im scduled to have laser surgery, my throat cancer is only second stage, it hasnt gone anywhere else ( fingers crossed ) its pretty scary tho. The doc said its real close to my voice box which he thinks could be touched dury surgery which could result in my voice being altered??? My concern is the after surgery, he told me that i would have a feeding tube for awhile( ? ) until i learned how to swallow correctly, im afraid that i may not be able to do that , because they are removing the piece from my throat that protects my lungs from food going into it. I dont know, im just afraid that the after surgery is gonna be hell. Im just scared i guess.. He did tell me recovery time would only be 3 to 6 weeks, witch makes me think it may not be all that bad. If you have any input that would be greatly appreciated Thankyou

Jr, I had laser surgery in July 2005 to remove "places" on my vocal cords.  Actually, my voice came back to normal after about 10 days.  About 10 months later my voice became hoarse again and In November 2006 I had laser surgery again to remove "places" on my cords. Both times the biopsy came back negative for cancer.  Then in December 2007, I again went into surgery due to hoaseness returning thinking I was going to be lasered again.  Came out of surgery and the doctor said there wasn't anything to laser and wanted authorization to take a larger "piece" of one of my cords because he was convinced it was cancer.  The biopsy did come back as cancer and the next week I began 36 radiation treatments.  Unfortunately, the radiation just made my cancer grow, both cords became immobile and larger making it difficult to breathe in.  On 9-11-08, I had a full laryngectomy to keep living...and I am alive. 

I'm only telling you all this for one reason...way back when I had the first laser surgery in 2005, had I quit smoking I would probably be standing today with my vocal cords and voicebox.  But because my biopsy kept coming back negative, I thought I was bulletproof and kept smoking...all the way until the cancer diagnosis in January 2008. 

Such a large percentage of folks who get head and neck related cancer were smokers.  It just seems to go hand in hand where the damage is being done everytime a person would inhale from a cigarette.  Don't get me wrong, I don't preach these days, that is, except to family members.  But I sure do miss being normal...I miss my voice, I miss smell and taste, being able to whistle, being able to control my nose...if only I would have understood that none of us are bulletproof.

Hopefully, you'll get your laser surgery, you'll take care of your body, and life will proceed normally.  I certainly wish you the best and hope that everything comes out ok.  Good luck my friend and keep one reminder in your thoughts: I used to complain about my legs hurting as I walked down the stairs..I quit complaining when I walked outside and watched the guy roll down the sidewalk in a wheelchair with no legs.  We can always...always find a way to be thankful for what we have instead of being sad or angry for what we lose or don't have.  Keep that outlook, which I must, and if you do, you/me/us/everyone can overcome anything.

Good luck and Godspeed.

Mike Smith (Laryngectomee 9-11-08) 

 

On 11/14/2008 Mike1sc wrote:

Jr, I had laser surgery in July 2005 to remove "places" on my vocal cords.  Actually, my voice came back to normal after about 10 days.  About 10 months later my voice became hoarse again and In November 2006 I had laser surgery again to remove "places" on my cords. Both times the biopsy came back negative for cancer.  Then in December 2007, I again went into surgery due to hoaseness returning thinking I was going to be lasered again.  Came out of surgery and the doctor said there wasn't anything to laser and wanted authorization to take a larger "piece" of one of my cords because he was convinced it was cancer.  The biopsy did come back as cancer and the next week I began 36 radiation treatments.  Unfortunately, the radiation just made my cancer grow, both cords became immobile and larger making it difficult to breathe in.  On 9-11-08, I had a full laryngectomy to keep living...and I am alive. 

I'm only telling you all this for one reason...way back when I had the first laser surgery in 2005, had I quit smoking I would probably be standing today with my vocal cords and voicebox.  But because my biopsy kept coming back negative, I thought I was bulletproof and kept smoking...all the way until the cancer diagnosis in January 2008. 

Such a large percentage of folks who get head and neck related cancer were smokers.  It just seems to go hand in hand where the damage is being done everytime a person would inhale from a cigarette.  Don't get me wrong, I don't preach these days, that is, except to family members.  But I sure do miss being normal...I miss my voice, I miss smell and taste, being able to whistle, being able to control my nose...if only I would have understood that none of us are bulletproof.

Hopefully, you'll get your laser surgery, you'll take care of your body, and life will proceed normally.  I certainly wish you the best and hope that everything comes out ok.  Good luck my friend and keep one reminder in your thoughts: I used to complain about my legs hurting as I walked down the stairs..I quit complaining when I walked outside and watched the guy roll down the sidewalk in a wheelchair with no legs.  We can always...always find a way to be thankful for what we have instead of being sad or angry for what we lose or don't have.  Keep that outlook, which I must, and if you do, you/me/us/everyone can overcome anything.

Good luck and Godspeed.

Mike Smith (Laryngectomee 9-11-08) 

Once again ty u for your reply., as u already figured out, yes I am a smoker, Im 59 and have been smoking for 46 years. It is so hard to just  put them down. I do know one thing tho after my surgery which is set for 11/26 I will no longer be a smoker. I figure being in the hospital will detox my body from nicotine. I know that I will not have a chance of beating this thing if I dont quit. I have mantained a positive attitude on all of this and I truly believe all will be well, I am greatful that I was diagnosed at an early stage. It saddens me to think of all those that havent been as fortunate. GOD Bless you and take care.

Jr, I started smoking at 13, quit on Jan 14th of this year, the day I was told I had cancer.  I'm only 54...if only I could have had someone stick their foot on my butt and convince me to quit, I may be talking now instead of writing.  It's amazing what the body can recover from once you quit...but I wasn't ever going to get cancer, so there was no need for me to quit...even after three scares I continued to smoke all the way to the day...then I couldn't believe how easy it was, when it finally hit me like a lead ball how much risk I was putting myself in, and the damage I had probably already caused, and in my case, did. 

Quit, my friend, your body is warning you and your mind struggles because of the addiction to nicotine.  I know it well.  But I can tell you there is relief after smoking, that is, there is until I look in the mirror and see that quarter size hole in my throat where I breathe and cough from.  But I no longer had the desire to smoke when it finally sunk in how much risk I was putting my body and my life.  Good luck man....ya gotta quit!  But you already know that.

Mike

Mike, I know I need to quit and will but it is extreamly hard, I am one of those smokers that automatically wakes up every 2 hours and cant get back to sleep until I smoke. Sick ? Whats sicker yet is that even tho I know I have cancer ( 99% sure caused by smoking, Im still at it ) My family thinks Im totally NUTS. 10 more days and then I will be smoke free. I have to check in to the hospital the day before surgery so they can insert the feeding tube. With the help of GOD . I know that i will be able to do this . Ty for incourgaging me, I cant even begin to imagine what you have been thru. GOD Bless You.

Jr, I tried so many times to quit and then would become a closet smoker for a year or so until exposed again. Non smokers don't understand the power of the addiction of nicotine in your body.  I have to tell you though that I started taking Chantix in December and three weeks later I was able to quit without any withdrawals, but then I was told I had cancer and was about to start radiation, so that made it kind of final as well.  Even at the onset of cancer, we always think we are going to get thru it and let the mind to start and convince you that it would be ok to smoke. 

But if there is one thing I hope you hear from me and that is this: When I go to my Laryngectomy Support Group and sit and look around at 18 other people with holes in their throats, struggling to barely talk (some of them don't), with every person in that group including their spouses and family greatly affected by what had happened, and then I learn that 17 of the 18 were smokers. This is not rocket science here. Smoking causes this.  This is real! This is what happens.

The brain of a smoker is tainted by the addiction.  For my last 7 years of smoking, I always justified it by only buying cigarettes 1 pack at a time because I was always going to quit after that next pack.  That was the nicotine affecting the thought process. 

Anyone that smokes should quit with the material that is available today that proves the damage smoking does to your body and the bodies close to you when you smoke.  But when the body signals danger signs to you that something is wrong, the bells should start ringing loud and clear.  Unfortunately by the time I heard the bells it was too late and the unchangable damage couldn't be corrected.  I am the worst case scenario of what happens to a smoker.  Sometimes I think it is worse than dying because of the difficulty faced every day just getting to the next day.  But my friend, you need to put them down and put them down now.  Call your doctor tomorrow and have him prescribe Chantix to you and quit! 

Literally your life may depend on it.  And I'm not preaching to you, and I know exactly where you are standing...I have stood in your shoes.  But I did not heed the call.....and I lost. Now I don't smoke but the damage in my case has been done.  You may yet get another chance. 

In any event, I do wish you good luck and Godspeed in your upcoming surgery and I hope you can muster the strength necessary to quit.

Mike 

I just had to throw in my two cents as well: My husband has been through 7 chemo sessions and 42 rad treatments to treat his stage IV SCC that all started out with a lump in his neck.  Yes, he was a smoker; 42 years old and probably smoked 2-3 packs per day since he was 13.  I was also a smoker though not as heavy as he was.

I will never forget the day his diagnosis came down. March 25th we were sitting in the ENT's office and he says well your results came back and I am sorry to tell you that the lump is cancerous.  Everything went downhill from there but he was able to drill into us that his chances of beating this if he didn't quit smoking would be nearly impossible. 

My husband finished out the pack that he had already opened that day, and slowly weaned himself down from 5 cigs per day, to 4, 3 and so on until that Saturday he had none and he has not picked up a cigarette since.  I finished out the carton we had and then I just didn't buy anymore and I haven't had a cigarette since April 4th and I haven't looked back.  Now he says he would rather stick a lit cigarette in his eye than smoke another one and go through the pain of his cancer treatments again.  He explained it like this: It would be like sticking your hand in a lawn mower and getting all the skin ripped off, letting it heal and get healthy again, only to stick it right back under the lawn mower, you just don't do that.

It certainly is not easy, but your health and body are worth it!  My hubby will be 6 months out from treatment on the 27th of November with 2 clean scans under his belt and he has never looked back on those nasty things we used to love so much (now I smell them and boy do they STINK!)

Good luck to you with your journey and I hope you can find it within yourself to stay strong!

God Bless