Greetings,
Diagnosed in December with Head and Neck cancer on tongue and lymph nodes. Had right radial neck dissection to remove cancerous lymph nodes along with 6 chemo cycles and 6 weeks + 14 days of booster radiation therapy. As you can imagine, all the fatigue, nausea and burnt/sore throat symptoms are prevalent.
The PEG tube and chest port have been wonderful in getting the infusions and nutrition to stay above water. From what is on the forums, it takes months to get voice and strength back to start feeling better. The hardest part is the toll chemo and radiation take on the salivary glands and taste buds. I read on this forum that for every week of radiation, it takes one month to get out of your system. Please correct this if it is inaccurate.
The mucositis caused by the radiation is bad. Don't know why the choking is worse at night interfering with sleep, but that is my experience. Can't wait for radiation to be over with. My neck has 1st degree burns and is peeling pretty bad despite lotions applied 2 to 3 times per day.
Keep checking back on this forum for more input from the good folks here. They are very knowledgeable, kind and caring. All the best!
To see more about my battle, visit my blog at:
http://www.psiplex.com