Not healing after 3 months from Throat Cancer treatment

ctillman · Guest

My brother finished his radiation and chemo combination for throat cancer in late September. His throat is still so inflammed and has so much mucus that the doctor and ENT have a hard time looking in his throat to see what is going on. In fact, the Radiologist Oncologist told us to wait another 2 months before we come back. He can not do the Pet/MRI scans until he has healed.

Everyone I talk to says that it takes 8 to 10 weeks for the throat to begin healing. I just wonder why he is not healing. He can not talk and uses the suction machine every few minutes for the mucotosis. He is only using the feeding tube.

My brother, although only 50, is a recovering alcoholic for 4 years. Could it be that he is just not going to heal?

jerre · Newbie Joined: 06 Mar 2007 Posts: 2

I was treated for throat cancer. I had 70 radiation treatments in my throat .It was at the base of my tounge.I wasn.t a smoker and never used tobacco products.It has been 14 months since my last treatment.I had the same problem with the mucas.It just takes time ,he may want to try rinsing with soda water this will help cut the mucas . It was the worst sore throat i have ever had and nothing helped .you just have to push through it. The worst is over and it will get better. will he have to take salagen for his saliva? Was he able to retain any of his taste? These are the two worst things I will have to endure after my treatment I ended up loosing 60 lbs. After i finished up my treatment I went into the hospital to for malnutrition for two weeks. after i was relaesed i had too have my gall bladder removed.It was not a easy one. I woke up with a tube comming out of my stomach. a week later they had to go in and put a stint in.Thc clamp they had first put on didn't hold. thing 6 weeks later same day surgery to remove the stint.So see it could be worst. I know words at this time don't mean much ,but i know exactly what your going thru and i am pulling for you ,I promise it will get better but not overnight.your mouth and throat have been thru a lot , and healing is slow , but gradually over time it will start to ease. I still have soreness in my throat but it's nothing compared to where i've been. hang in there !

karie · Newbie Joined: 13 Mar 2007 Posts: 3

My father had received radiation treatment for cancer of the epiglottis. The treatment ended in December. However, instead of gradually feeling better, the pain gradually got worse, if you can believe that. The Doctors continued to treat his symptons with prednisone and told him he needs time to heel. Now, three months later, he is going for another biopsy to determine what the spot/lump on his voice box is as seen in the PET scan and CAT scan. It is so horrible to see him in this pain. His biopsy is tomorrow and the Doctors say it could be recurrent cancer that has moved to the voice box (treatable only by removing the voice box) or it could be a severe infection. I would appreceiate any comments/suggestions.

Karie

BernardAsh · Newbie Joined: 07 Jul 2007 Posts: 1

This post sure hits home with us. My 82 yr old father had 40 radiation treatments for his throat cancer. Then he had 2 major throat surgeries to try to eradicate any residual cancer cells. His last radiation treatment was in April of '06. His last surgery was Nov '06. It has been over a year and the poor guy is still afraid of drowning / choking because he has so much (and so thick) mucus. To make matters worse, he can't swallow due to aspiration problems. What a mess !

We've seen very slight improvement in the mucus in over a year. He's fed through a belly tube. The most significant change we've seen is from (recently) switching to very slow but constant drip feeding instead of "bolus" (in mass) feedings.

The anxiety has been getting worse and worse and its now completely unmanageable. We have to sit by his bed and hold his hand / rub his back 24/7. He periodically has episodes where he can't clear the airway of the mucus because he's away from the suction machine. When this happens, his whole body shuts down from fear and he's completely helpless. More than once we thought we were going to lose him on the spot. The anxiety appears to be linked to the fear of drowning / choking but that has not yet been validated / confirmed / "proven".

We're now contemplating a tracheotomy in hopes that he'll be more comfortable because he'll have less fear about his airway.

In spite of our efforts to seek professional (many doctors) guidance, we have not received any suggestions that have helped.

Would anyone recommend any specific doctors or clinics for this sort of situation?

Any thoughts / ideas about the anxiety or mucus would be greatly appreciated.

Not healing after 3 months from Throat Cancer treatment

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