Hi All, Hope everyone is doing well. To keep everyone updated - my husband who has stage 3 SCC seems to be doing better for the most part. He has now been officially done with his radiation treatment exactly 1 month to the day. He is eating a few more "solids" but I still have to be very selective what I give him. His appetite is still not where it should be though. What I don't understand is - just 2 days ago, he was pretty energetic (all n' all considering) and he ate a pretty big meal consisting of Xmas sausages, stuffed cabbage etc. and even 2 bowls of ice cream! Yesterday he ate only about half that amount, and today he hardly had a morsel. Plus his energy was totally gone today - he slept pretty much the whole night and day. He said he felt very "blahsay". In anyone's personal experience is this a normal side-effect from the radiation treatment yet? I know some folks have said that it can take months before he is feeling somehwhat back to normal - but it's been a whole month since the rad treatment, and I would think he should be feeling more energetic each day. He said he still has about 5 mouth sores left which I suppose accounts for the poor appetite yet. But it's so disheartening to see him so "up" one day - and the next day lying around and moping. Also, he has been complaining about inner ear pain on the side they treated and even a bit of pain in the other ear. Can this be from the rad treatment as well? He has a follow-up appointment with his doctor coming up in a few weeks. Thanks for your help in this matter.

I to have a husband that Radiation took everything out of him he has been done now for three months and he still gets very tired with no energy some days he does some he doesn't.I think Brian said that for every treatment it takes a month to get your strength back so I think he could be feeling this way for a year or so. I let him rest when he feels like it some days its all day long. We just take one day at at a time this has been our experience with it. Maybe someone else can help you with an answer. Hope things get better with his appetite I know nutrition is very important if he does not eat maybe a Ensure or something like that will take the place and give him more energy.

What he is going through is completely normal and probably will not change significantly in the near future. The negative effects of the radiation are still taking place in his body, and won't stop for a while longer. Then gradually, in very small increments, you will start to see progress. Think one month of recovery for every week of radiation...It's a long haul.

I still felt pretty bad one month after radiation and even today, almost 4 months out,although I feel good, my energy level goes up and down. I am impressed that your husband can eat all of those robust foods one month after radiation. Approaching 4 months I can still only swallow liquids, like broth. Even ice cream and smoothies don't work for me yet. Keep up the good work.

Danny G.

Hi DonnaJean

Sometimes its not just the treatment that causes this ebb in energy but just the everyday living that can be tiring, to be able to eat a great meal like he has done is pretty significiant in that his recovery is going well but he just might be pushing himself a little too hard we cancer survivors tend to do that sometimes andour bodies just remind us that it has been traumatized and needs to rest.
Take care
Jerri

I think you could be right Jerri. My husband is a former Marine, who has some definite stubborness and spitfire to him! He wants so much to be able to eat "regular" food (aka: solids)that he may be overdoing it somewhat. But quite frankly, I'm happy when I see him eating or even requesting something substantial, since he won't drink Ensure or go for a PEG tube. It seems one can't get adequate nutrition living on chocolate milk and scrambled eggs (which he is so sick of already!). And it's a challenge to come up with some soft, nutritious and tasty things he can have. He's also type II diabetic which is another problem. He also has carpal tunnel syndrome, PTSD and various skin conditions and a torn meniscus in one of his knees. He normally takes 17 pills a day - but now hardly any, because swallowing is still difficult with the rather large pills. Anyways, thanks for the feedback - it really helps!

DonnaJean,

You may want to fight harder with your stubborn hubby to get him to drink Ensure or Boost. Nutrition is totally important for recovery, and if you can't get it through the solid foods, you need to get it through the liquid supplements. This is especiallly important for patients with other health problems.

It also would be good to see if his doctors could get him a liquid form of his other medications. It's not a good thing for him to be off of them while he's recovering from the radiation. He needs to use all of his energy to recover from the cancer treatments. Any other health problems flaring up could impede his progress. All patients need to keep as healthy as possible during treatments and recovery so things go smoothly.

The lack of energy thing is totally common. I am 4 months out and just started to have energy again last week. I used to have "crash days" every other day, but now get them less and less. What really helped me improve was getting my diet back in line. I hadn't been getting enough calories (both by mouth and by PEG tube) and was told by the doctor that I had 5 weeks to gain 10 pounds. My energy started to return as I gained the weight. The deadline passed and I still am 4 pounds short, but I'm still working on it. I have to thank the inventors of Boost for getting me through all of this.

I'll keep you and your hubby in my prayers. Good luck.

Hi,DonnaJean.

I did not have RAD or chemo, nor did I ever have a PEG tube. I too had a very hard time in the beginning, and refused to use either Ensure or any Ensure type product. Some suggestions for food, cheese cake, pudding (bread and rice pudding were the best), oatmeal, cream of wheat, grits, jello, applesauce, mashed potatoes with lots of gravy, ice cream and milkshakes. I also put ground turkey and beef in my food processor and made it very fine. When it was done I would make a meat patty, cook it, chop it up and smother it with gravy. My favorite veggie was spinach, chopped or creamed. Oh, and don't forget good old creamed soup, celery and chicken just to name a few. The process of eating was so slow that sometimes I would just finish my breakfast and it was time to eat my lunch.

I continued to take all of my meds in the same manner that it is currently given to my mother in a nursing home. (She has Parkinsons and is loosing her ability to swallow pills.) Mash your meds up very fine and mix them with applesauce, they just slide down your throat. Follow with some water and that should work fine.

I hope some of these suggestions help. I was probably just as stubborn as your husband. My surgery was two and one half years ago and I'm doing fine now.

Take care and if I think of anymore of the fun things I lived off of for 12 weeks, I'll let you know.

Anne.