Hi everyone, I have a question. My husband Ron finished radiation treatments on his throat about a month and a half ago. His throat is still very sore and he's still not up to speed in the eating dept. This past weekend we flew up to Seattle to visit my in laws (we live in Southern California). While in Washington, Ron's throat became much more painful, and he had an even harder time eating. He had to take more pain meds during that trip, and he's been weaning himself off the pain meds. Can the cold weather effect his throat that much? I know the air in airplanes is dry, but the flight was only 2 hours. Has anyone else experienced this, or do you have any idea why this happened?

Thanks for your help,

Shelley

Shelley,

Even a year and some (2-3) months after treatment, I still struggle when the weather gets cold and dry here in Texas. We have been going from 80 to 20 in a couple of days for a while and I really notice the colder mornings. It hurts and I seem to have to learn how to swallow all over again. For many weeks after treatment, I had to travel on an airplane (only about 45 mintues) and I noticed it, too. We flew on a 13 hour trip to Japan and I thought it was borderline unbearable. Lots of water seems to be the best answer. Even on extended trips in the car (5+ hours) with the air conditioner on makes the throat hurt and I have difficulty swallowing.

Ed

Shelley,

It doesn't take much -- I just got back about an hour ago from a day trip to northern Vermont (where the air was colder and drier) and my throat is in pain. I try to avoid planes as much as possible because of the dryness factor, and when flying is unavoidable, it's important to get enough fluids to stay hydrated.

Cathy

Hi Shelly; From the frozen north of Canada I concur that the cold air does quite a number on a radiated throat. There is still such tender thin tissue back there at your husband's stage of recovery, he will have to sip and sip in any situation where the air is dry.
Yes, I agree that air conditioning has the same effect (ouch). I keep the mist machine on at night and keep the house well humidified during the day.
For those who live in winter-lands we have to guard our throats in cold and dry conditions.
Even when visiting folks..I sometimes have to ask for fluids because it doesn't occur to them that because I am not drinking alcohol that I don't need anything to drink.
Like most of us, your hubby probably goes nowhere without a couple of bottles of water. We paddle our own canoe right.
Godspeed you two in your recovery,
Fran

Thank you for responding and answering my question! This forum is fantastic. Little did we know what going into the cold weather would cause. Fran you are so right about the water bottles, they are now extensions of my hubby's hands. Doesn't go anywhere without them! His throat is feeling a little better, I guess it's just going to take time. Thanks again to all of you!

Shelley

Shelly,

I don't know for sure if it was the recent course of 40 hyperbaric oxygen treatments or just the passage of time, but I've found that I haven't needed to carry the water bottle(s) so much in recent weeks. Then, last Saturday, I got on a plane from Seattle to New York. Boy, am I glad I took water with me on the plane!

Ken

Shelly,

I found the most painful time was after treatment was over. Which I was not expecting at all. I thought I did so well during treatment. I finished radiation and chemo right before Memorial Day of last year and continued to need a pain patch thru July. And as for the dryness it helps to sleep with a warm air humidifier in the room and NO ceiling fan on(it just drys the throat even more) And of course water, water, water. I find green tea very soothing, warm not hot of course. And the cold weather is a killer on the throat due to the dryness. Again, water!!!

Be patient it gets better weekly.
Carol

I agree with Carol that cold and dry weather is a killer to our throat. The weather has been very cold and dry in Hong Kong these days and my voice becomes very hoarse. Sometimes I have difficulty talking in the lessons. Drinking water doesn't help much and yesterday morning, when there was rain, I felt so much better talking with people. Perhaps a humidifier is what I need. Air in the plane is exceptionally dry and the only thing one can do is to sip more water throughout the journey. Be careful with the air pressure too when the plane is descending. I have never had so much discomfort as I was in the plane about to land when I returned from a 1 hour flight from China during Christmas. My ears were in such pain that I thought the ear drums were about to burst. I didn't experience that when I travelled to Singapore in July. The flight took more than 3 hours. So sometimes you don't really know what to or what not to expect.Even the same person experiencs something different on similar occasions.

Karen.