Hi - John is about 6 weeks post treatment and developed a puffy area towards the front of his jaw last week. He saw his oncology dentist for a check-up and was told it was a "dewlap" -fluid that gathers near the area that has had radiation because the normal drainage channels are disrupted. The dentist said it would go away eventually.

I wish I could just accept these types of explanations but I am always left wondering.

For the first month after treatment he was getting better every day. Now he seems to have days when he is more exhausted, his voice is very hoarse, his throat is sore and he gets tons of mucous. Have other people experienced a set back in progress after treatment but then move forward again? Should he see a doctor? It was great to see him slowly get better but now he seems to be back sliding.

Any thoughts?

Mary

All of the above mentioned nuisances are normal and you may even see more that are even more frightening. If you are frightened, don't hesitate to call or demand to see the Doctor. They work for you, not the other way around. They are also human beings and are not infalable. If you encounter a Doctor that has an attitude of being inconvenienced whenever you ask questions, fire him/her.
Darrell

"Dewlap" is defined as "the pendulous skin hanging under the throat". I cross referenced this in several medical dictionaries and they all had the same definition. It is also known as "turkey wattle" which I have seen here on the forum. It is a somewhat normal temporary condition from radiation damage to the eustacian tubes and other drainage (lymphatic?) channels I imagine. The weight loss also amplifies it. Most of us had it as well. I had lots of issues with fluid buildup and difficulty hearing in the early post Tx - nothing to freak out over (it even showed up on all of the early MRI's).

Although I have the greatest respect for dental oncologists they are just specialed dentists. I would run it by the MO and RO just to give you some piece of mind. My MO was the PCP for the greater part of my Dx and Tx.

Mary,

I also had noticeable swelling around my jaw that continued for a long time. I recently found an old photo that was taken more than a year after I finished radiation, and the swelling was quite visible then. It did gradually go away.

If he's only 6 weeks post-treatment, the exhaustion and hoarseness are not unusual. Remember that it can often take a month of recovery time for each week of radiation.

I agree with Gary that at this point he should still be having regular visits with an oncologist who can track his progress and deal with anything that might seem out of the ordinary.

Cathy

Mary, I had a spectacularly ugly turkey wattle and although I am not particularly vain, was considering surgery to remove at least some of it when it very quickly vanished. Not quite overnight, but one day it was there, and the next time I looked it was gone!

It is entirely normal to have good days and bad days, and ups and downs in recovery. Assess weekly, not more frequently, and you will most often see progress.

Hi Mary,

As the rest have said, what your husband is experiencing is totally normal. My husband had and still does have fluid build up under his chin. Especially in the morning when he wakes up. We took him to my facialist and she gave him a lymphatic drainage massage and it really helped. Now every morning he massages his throat and it helps the fluid that has built up to "disburse" so to speak throughout his body. Give it a try, I bet it will help.

Good Luck,

Shelley

My husband is going through a period of devastation right now. He, too, was getting better every day until about 4 weeks post radiation when all of it seemed to hit the fan! He was greeted with small painful bumps in the mouth, which no one seems to know why. He was also slapped with much more swelling and pain in his jaw than before. Frustration is setting in and it is all I can do just to get him out of bed in the morning! :o(

So, yes, there are others going through the post treatment "punch" as our oral surgeon called it! I do have to look into long term effects though! We were not given much information about what to expect post treatment... :o(