Hi:
My husband completed 7 weeks of radiation and chemo for Stage IV squamous cell poorly differentiated head and neck cancer. Primary tongue. All I can say is, it was a summer that lasted for five years. Feeding tube is out, he now has no saliva, undergoing some physical therapy for the muscle that was removed from his shoulder and neck. His only food is Carnation VHC four cans per day with soup and a few cooked veggies if he can swallow. We need any support and encouragement. Our follow up scans are for February.

Tell him to hang in there! And to keep swallowing, stretching his tongue, mouth and jaw and walk as much and as far as he can. Recovering from treatment is a long, long road, but it can be done - there's lots of proof of that on this site.

Oh, and Welcome!

I agree with Margaret.. keep doing all of that,, but get tha nourishment in there too. Keep a good positive attitude and let it know you are the boss. I kind of think that the dry mouth is the worst part. Have to have liquid with you at all times. Welcome to the worlds best web site with the most caring people.

Biotene moisturing products for dry mouth relief are very helpful. They are available in most pharmacies, and also Walmart, etc in with the mouth washes, toothpastes, etc. My favorite is the mouth spray, but they also have mouth wash and toothpaste.

Lani

Welcome and I hope that you receive the support that you need.

My doctor also gave me a mouth rinse called Caphosol that requires a prescription. It comes in two parts that you mix together and then swish and spit. I really like it. I gets ride of what I fondly refer to as "the slime" and them keeps my mouth from being so dry for quite awhile. I especially like the results if I use it before I go to bed. I don't wake up with such a dry. mucousy mess in my mouth. Someone also sugested that I get a humidifier for the bedroom at night and I plan to pick one up this week.

Running a vaporizer at night will make him much more comfortable and tell him to make sure he keeps on swallowing. Smoothies, eggs, creamed soups, casseroles. Keep lots of water on hand to help with swallowing during the meals (and I do mean LOTS!) I didn't know about yogurt (the stirred kind) before my surgeries but now wonder how I managed without it! I eat alot of yogurt with berries or other fruit in it, and also use the yogurt to cover small pieces of cake, etc which makes that so much easier.

He needs to keep swallowing. Meals that now take about a hour to consume about 1/2 a bowl of soup will speed up - but it takes time. I can remember being exhausted AND frustrated after one of these one hour meals!

Keep posting - lots here have invaluable experience.

Donna

I lived on VHC during my Tx and for about a year post Tx. As I could eat more and more solid foods I would mix the VHC with equal parts whole milk and drink that with each meal since I hated eating because of the dry mouth and poor taste. The good news is that slowly and I mean slowly he will regain his saliva and his taste. It took me 16 months post Tx before I could say I really began to enjoy eating again so patience is demanded.

If you are going to continue to post and I hope you do, it's better if you modify your signature to include his "stats" so that when you post the responder knows better where you're coming from and you don't have to repeat yourself over and over.
See mine below as an example. To add to your signature go to the top of the screen and click on MY PROFILE. Then click on EDIT PROFILE and scroll down to the Signature Block and type away.

Most importantly tell him he needs to consume a minimum of 3000 cals a day and also drink plenty of liquids. Also tell him that what he's experiencing now is normal. This recovery just takes a great deal of time and the body needs all the hydration and fuel he can give it to heal itself.

Keep on swallowing.

Keep on stretching jaw open.

Both of these are "Use 'em or lose 'em" functions.