Questions???????????

Hi everyone: I just had  a couple of questions

1 - I am 10 and 1/2 months post op and  over the last month or so I have developed this cough. It seems to occur whenever I eat something and it does not matter what it is or how well I chew or how slow I eat, has anyone had this happen to them and is it something I should be concerned about?

2 - I am from Canada and was just wondering if anyone knew what I could do with unused prescriptions as I have quit a few of them and do not know what to do with them, it seems such a waste to throw them out. 

Thank You to anyone who replies

Take Care and Be Positive

Evelyn

Hi Evelyn!

how are you????  good to see you around!

i cough sometimes after i eat as well....  it used to happen more earlier on after my surgery, but i still notice it happens when i eat too close to bed time....i find myself coughing a lot once i retire.  not sure, if it is some sorta reflux??

 as far as the meds....i am not familiar with the Canadian way, but here in the US, we are told to flush all no used meds down the toilet.  no one should use anything that was prescribed for someone else.  i agree it does seem like a waste...i have thrown out some things that i never even opened....full prescriptions!

 

Evelyn, I only had a cough for two months after my esophagectomy and occasionally for part of a day. I googled your question and it came back that they did a survey and 39% of the people stated that they were unhappy with eating and coughing. So, I assume it probably can happen without a valid reason or medical condition. I would keep track and record when you have this coughing and what you are eating and the time of day. I also suffer from seasonal allergies like pollen, from trees and mole spores and this will cause you to cough. If all else fails and it continues put I call in to the Doctor. I believe its just one of the gifts from having our surgerys. Please don't worry about it, you will be fine.  Take Care,  Phil A.

They are saying not to flush them anymore because they are in the water everywhere, killing fish, etc. If they aren't too hefty you are supposed to wrap the bottle and throw in trash.  Pain meds, etc should be mixed with something gross like cat litter or coffee grounds before throwing away to discourage anyone from using them.

Might the cough be from post nasal drip? Pat used to have a lot of mucus and cough and used benadryl, then switched to zyrtec since it's good for 24 hours (claritin might work too and is non drowsy). Have heard others swear by Mucinex. He doesn't experience it much anymore. Might be worth a try.

here in NYC we still told to flush...all our sewer water goes through water treatment plant prior to going back into the river/ocean....i suppose it considered safer than putting it into the landfill.....

who knows.. *shrugs*

Hi Evelyn, Good to hear you are doing well! (and happy belated B'day!) Re cough, well dad was better in the 1st 9 mnths and then started a cough after every meal as well (+ with him, the cough hurt the incision area and eventually he had to get pain meds and made a huge diff) nothing to worry about, just a 'New pattern'. Made no diff what he ate or how slowly etc, just one of those things. Seems to be quite common to develop new symptoms after almost the 1st yr, which are just a part of the new digestive system having been MAJORLY reworked. I know it's a pain, but for the most part it's nothing to worry about as all your tests have come back neg, just your body telling you it's not sure about new design! Take care and ask often if anything new crops up, as all survivors have different 'new feelings' and wonder if they are normal. Moira.

Stacey

That makes total sense too. I realized they sent us 1/2 the Xeloda in our refill last time (and charged for a full bottle). They said they would not reimburse the half bottle because of copays, but would replace the missing 1/2 (makes no sense since his dose was cut in 1/2 in April so they really sent the right amount for 30 days).  I don't think a Medicare plan should be charged for 60 Xeloda we never got and no longer need. I was relieved not to have that many more extras leftover. Hard to know what to do with them, and the toxicity level of oral chemo meds is ridiculous. I still have about 50 left and it's illegal to give them to anyone else to use, although it's tempting with how expensive they are, and how difficult they are to dispose of.

Hi Evelyn,

It never hurts to check with your physician.  But, even after 5 years I cough.  Scares my hubby half to death.  Certain things trigger the cough:
1) overeating 2) something like vinegar 3) talking while eating 4) just being over-tired and some other things like acid reflux.  I did ask the doctor to stretch my esophagus a year ago when the coughing after/while eating got very annoying.  They did the stretch, but the surgeon said she didn't think it really needed it.  Sometimes I wonder if I get a little virus that causes my throat to swell some.  Maybe my symptoms are not anything related to yours, but it comes and goes.  Sometimes I can go for several weeks without incident and then all of a sudden I will be bothered for several weeks.  I hope you can figure it out.

Oh, I gave my unused meds to my oncologist-radiologist.  They would only take unopened absolutely untampered with meds, but mine were very expensive and I hated to throw them out also.  I was also able to give unopened cases of liquid nutrition to the clinic.  Some of the ones I had didn't even have the cellophane opened on the outside of the boxes.  I also had lots and lots of swabs and gauze and bandages and sterile water bottles that I donated to a summer camp.  I flushed all the other tablets, but that was before they said not to.

It surely is nice to get rid of all the memories of stuff that was unpleasant.

Best wishes.