Hi Christine,

Thanks for your thoughts and the food list. I actually had wonton soup last night; I've found it does retain some taste, and is easy to take in. Many of the foods on your list, though easy to swallow, are not very appetizing now (yogurt tastes like chalk; maple syrup has no sweetness, etc.).

I got through the treatment in a fairly healthy state: I had a strong white blood cell count after two doses of chemo, and kept most of the weight. Less than a week and my external radiation dermatitis (i.e. burns) have receded on one side to where they don't need cream, and my need for pain meds is receding as well. I know the damage internally is much bigger than what I can see. I will be seeing both my cancer docs and my regular physician in the weeks ahead, and my body is about 180 pounds now, down from my "fattened up" starting weight of 194. Dropping to 175 would be less than 20 pounds down which I have heard is the outer limit during treatment before one no longer fits the rad mask. I don't have much energy to work out now, but will soon as my strength returns.

John D.