Sorry to hear about the positive nodes. I guess now you have some time to wait until the radiation and chemo treatments will begin.

Glad to hear that he was able to eat at least something with the swallow test. The first couple of times I tried to swallow something, I had a similar experience. Drinking plain water or something with very little viscosity, I didn't have much control over where it was going in my mouth, and it would dribble down my chin. But thicken it up a bit, and I was able to swallow it. After this, I started on watered down cream of wheat, soups, applesauce, pudding, and then up from there. The technique seems a bit foreign and is more akin to swallowing something from a straw, or trying to "vacuum" drool from your lips than what we are used to.

Also glad to hear that the flap site on the wrist looks good. Mine had also split open, kindof along the spot where the artery was removed. It took plenty of triple antibiotic ointment and gauze pad wrappings over a few weeks until it healed. Even one year post surgery, I can still see where the staples held the new skin in place. And yes, it looks more like a burn than anything else.

Keep on fighting! Sounds like you have a good plan of attack in place.