My Husband is undergoing 35 IMRT treatments, 45 minutes each and is about half way through. He presented to his GP with ear pain in November of 2003 and was referred to an ENT who diagnosed him with Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the tonsil after a biopsy. A Radical Neck dissection followed on December 5th 2003 and IMRT treatments followed in January 2004. He has gone through a lot in a short time but is doing well. Lately his hearing is failing rapidly. The Family can hardly stand to be in the same room with him when he is watching TV as he needs to have it up so loud to hear. The nurses in Radiation Oncology have suggested Sudafed 60mg 4x daily, but it doesn't seem to be working. Anyone have any knowledge of this side effect?

Vanessa

Hi Vanessa,
If he is receiving Cisplatin chemotherapy contact your oncologist immediately, especially if his symptoms are accompanied by ringing or buzzing.

If not then the problem he is having is fairly common. I had earaches and hearing loss temporarily as a result of mastoid fluid build up early in recovery. it eventually resolved iteslf and I am fine today. It was very much like having a bad cold and having your hearing "plugged up". The radiation damaged the eustachian tubes and it took a while for them to heal. He should be fine in about a month. They gave me a decongestant also with marginal results. You need to be watchful for secondary infections. If there is any elevation in temperature I would report this to the doctor.

I had the TV up pretty loud for a while also -maybe headphones are a temporary solution.

It'll get better.

Hi Vanessa, and welcome! Good to see another Minnesotan but sorry it is for this reason.

You didn't mention if he is also getting Chemo drugs, some of the people here have had side effects from chemo that affect hearing. Other than that sometimes the eustachian tube from the ears can be affected by radiation and then cause the ear or ears to "plug up". In any case I would suggest (strongly) that you keep on the doctors about this.

Take care

Vanessa, I am the one who had the Cisplatin and had serious hearing changes. If he is on that drug, get him off of it PDQ. For some people, less than 1%, it will cause complete hearing loss. The way my chemo oncologist put it was he didn't want to cure the cancer and have me end up deaf as a post. This is not a joke. If he is on chemo, you must call the doc right now!
Addendum:
My hearing is absolutely top notch now, and returned to normal when I stopped the Cisplatin and switched to other poisons.

Vanessa, I also received cisplatin as part of my treatment. Maybe the dosage wasn't that heavy, my hearing had not been affected. I did hear frequent buzzing sound like a train running by your side for about a month post treatment. I also heard occasional ringing sound and thought that someone was pressing the door bell. Luckily all these signs disappeared gradually and now my hearing is 100% back to normal. Yes, cisplatin is notorious for damaging our ears and the side effect can be chronic. You'd better discuss it with your doctor to see if anything can be done ASAP. Take care,

Karen stage 4 tonsil cancer diagnosed in 9/01.

Hi Vanessa,

My father is having problems hearing also! He is having a hearing test on Monday. He ended chemo (Carboplatin - sp?)on October 6th, but did not start having problems until about a month and a half later.

Does anyone know if chemo can effect hearing that long after it has stopped???

His ENT did not seemed that concerned, and was confident that it was due to the radiation and would eventually come back.

My Dad has the TV volume up ALL THE WAY! I can hear the TV when I pull in the driveway. I also have to shout everything into his left ear.

I hope everything works out. I would definitely see the Dr., just to make sure it is not a side effect of the chemo. Gook luck and take care!

Hi Vanessa,

Guess you can tell from the posts that it could be a couple of things causing the hearing problem.

I have had problems with hearing due to radiation damage and the tubes not draining properly after the damage. Fluid buildup in the ears. Besides Sudafed my ENT has me stand in the shower every morning and blow my nose and then my ears. When you hold you nose to blow your ears hold on to the wall with the other hand - it will make you dizzy. This has helped me.

I also experienced the chemo swishing and ringing. Please do not hesitate if he is on chemo to mention this side effect. People tend to keep quiet about bad side effects because they are afraid the doctor will take them off of the treatment and then they won't be getting any treatment. This is not a good thing. It can cause permanent damage.

Take Care,
Dinah

Thank you all for the wonderful advice. Dean is not having any chemo, just radiation. I will keep on the Dr's about it though. I called his surgeon and he is going to see him and maybe put tubes in. He thought he could do it in the office. Our son rigged him up headphones for the TV through the surround sound on the stereo so he can have it up as loud as he wants. Thanks for the tip.

Vanessa

Vanessa,
I would be patient. Certainly I would get a second opinion before I had any additional surguries especially while still receiving radiation. The immune system is down and the chance of infection is great.

Please re-read my post from the 6th.

Aaargh!
All this talk of hearing loss, and I am a sound engineer? What'll I do for my next career?

I am up to #11 of radio, with 24 to go and have thrush, bleeding gums, sore throat, can't swallow etc. I don't feel too bad as yet, just thinking positive, and trying to get something into my gullet, and also continue working part-time as I am self-employed.

A story comes to mind about a friend in Greece: He gaily announced to the village one day that it was his birthday. Everyone who knew him said, "Yani, it's not your birthday. What are you on about?". He replied it certainly was, as he had reached the five year mark from his first diagnosis of cancer, and now he was beginning life again... ;-) Good attitude I reckon :-)

tizz (47 yrs old, 41 lymph nodes removed, 1 positive, SCC left soft palate near tonsil, painful shoulder/arm and heaps of numbness!)

Hi Tizz, Hang in there! Pace yourself on the eating, make it your job for now. I had radiation and surgery only and I can hear fine.

Hi, Tizz. You are almost halfway, and that in itself is a great accomplishment. I would not add on a worry about hearing. Absent chemo, it appears most hearing changes from rad resolve. I had 37 rad treatments and recently had my hearing checked and it is extraordinarilly acute as it has always been, so the odds are you will be just fine in that regard. Be sure to check back with any other concerns you have. I can testify to the great help it was to me to be able to turn to a group of people who had already experienced what I was just approaching. So make use of this good resource!