Ok we are 2 weeks out of tx. Had to have fdg tube because of 50lb loss. Had scope done at our 2wk check this past week. They said he had a lot of radiation damage and inflammation still- obviously to be expected.- he is able to take thin liquids by mouth but has not been able to take anything else. They had told him to try things like mashed potatoes, things a little thicker... But he has not. I'm so worried if he doesn't start taking things by mouth,that he is allowing the normal formation of scarring/ stricture to occur.seems like I am seeing a lot of this early in people's lives and want to help him avoid it.. Thoughts?

After what your husband has been thru this is completely normal. At this point, the radiation is still working just like he is going for treatments.

It will take weeks before he starts to progress. Recovery is a very slow process and cant be rushed. For most patients, its a frustrating time full of ups and downs and it cant happen fast enough.

A barium swallow study is something to ask the doc about to ensure he isnt aspirating when he attempts to swallow.

Keep up your husbands nutrition and hydration with at least 2500 calories and 48 oz of water daily for at least the first year. If he can take more in takes even better. After what he has gone thru it will quickly get burned up since his body is in recovery mode. Many days during my recovery I would take in 7000+ calories and I never gained an ounce. It took me 5 years post rads to gain any weight.

Best wishes!

Two weeks out is still early. I could not eat until the 7th week post treatment, and that was cream of wheat, peaches by the teaspoons, and that's about it, and just relied on my peg. Slowly I started trying new foods, adding them to my diet supplemented by glucerna. I can eat everything now, you name it, I probably ate it, and often take pictures of my dishes, which started out as celebration showing my first post treatment meal, now into a hobby, when others encouraged me to post more. I have maybe a thousand pictures lol, so that's a lot of meals. It will come in time, and there are ways to increase weight, taste, and swallowing ability to enjoy food, but this may be too early, and tasting is more thsn just eating. Do what you can do now with issues not often associated with eating, tasting, and appetite is treating mucocits, thrush and other bacterial, viral infections, dehydration, thick mucus, dry mouth, exercising mouth, keep swallowing, even dry swallowing, I lost 110 pounds from one treatment, and have gained 60 back, which took a while.

It is said, "use it or lose it!" which is true to some extent, but the tongue, taste and other swallowing muscles have memory, like other muscles in the body and come back to what it was, and I don't believe in no pain, no gain. The same for his weight, the body has an affinity to go back to your highest weight, which can be controlled by diet, exercise to fit your lifestyle.

Btw, I could not eat mashed potatoes for a year or more, it was a texture thing I could not tolerate. Now I make all kinds of potatoes.

You will find new pleasure in food, taste like you never tasted before, although not the same, but you will become a more discerning conneoisseur of food, I guarantee.

Good luck.

Dear Colleen, you have heard from two of the most knowledgeable people on this forum. At this stage, please pay a great deal of attention to his oral hygiene, so that in the unfortunate event of some of the liquid getting into his lungs, the bacteria in the mouth do not go down and infect his lungs.

Thank you all for your input. Makes me feel so much better after reading hearing other reports. I know my husband will be pleased to hear this too. Always great to get the reassurance and feedback of other members. Thanks!

Hi Colleen. Just make sure at this point that he is at least swallowing water or some liquids every day. John couldn't eat anything this soon after treatments ended but he did swallow water every day. Hang in there!