Rhonda,

Recovery from this disease can be a slow process -- both physically and mentally. The effects of radiation tend to linger for a long time, but hopefully your husband will be able to see improvement bit by bit.

For me, it took quite awhile, but the taste buds came back in stages until finally (after a matter of several months), they were pretty much back to normal. Even though I had conventional radiation, not IMRT, I still have been able to get back a surprising amount of salivary function and enjoy almost any kind of food. Within a few months after my treatment ended, I was back to a full work schedule again and also able to enjoy travel.

It takes time, but I think many of us found that we got to the point where we didn't wake up every day thinking about cancer. The first few followup visits with doctors can sometimes be nerve-wracking, but if you get through those with clear results, you start to see a trend in the right direction -- and then hopefully you can begin to work on making the most of the "new normal".

Cathy