Hi, as some of you know I will be starting radiation in the next couple weeks. It still has yet to be determined when exactly and how long I will be doing so. I am thinking that I will probably do a 35x treatment to my left neck and possibly my tongue since that is where it originated. However I have had a partial glossectomy and a neck dissection taking out 10 nodes already. My question is has any of you continued to work throught the full treatment of radiation? My job entails me talking a lot and long hours however I do not do any strenuous. I will have to let my work know and I am afraid that they will be finding a replacement for me since I have already been out for the last 2 surgeries. Even though I have my neck dissection on wed afternoon and will be returning to work on tuesday! From what I was told it would put me out 2-3 weeks...maybe I am stupid to go back but everyone knows how tough it is to live in this economy! Especially in south florida! Please let me know if anyone has talked this battle while continuing to work a full time job. Thanks again

Jim

Jim, make sure you fully understand how FMLA works. Its a federal program that makes it possible to be out from work for certain long term illnesses.

I was out of work about 4 months each time I got OC. First time was radiation and chemo. Second time 10 months later was surgery but I had complications afterwards. When I returned to work it was only 1/2 days and limited talking. My job is customer service and I couldnt handle talking non stop for 10 hr days. Im now thankfully back to full time but it took a long time and alot of therapy to get back to close to my normal self.

This is something that will take alot out of you. I ended up being hospitalized several times throughout my treatments. I got to a point that I couldnt even walk and was in a wheelchair. The last thing on my mind was working, just getting out of bed was an effort. You cant rush getting better. I wish you the best of luck and an easy time of it. Bottom line is radiation and chemo can kick your butt and there isnt an easy way around it.

Jim,

A small % of people that have the Rad breeze thru it with hardly any problems. Likewise a small % have a horrible time and can't do anything. The remaining 80% or so of us had a pretty bad time beginning with the 3rd to 4th week of rad and ending with the 3rd week post Tx.

Lets hope you fall into the first group but be prepared for anything.

I worked through my entire course of treatment, but that is the exception, not the rule, as David notes. I was able to work from home for awhile after my bilateral neck dissection, then returned to the office for the balance of the time.

Keep in mind that quite aside from the physical challenge are the logistical and psychological challenges. If you are having concurrent chemotherapy, that is a time investment, and has its own side effects. Scheduling the appointments to minimize intrusion with work is a challenge. Even when you feel OK physically, it is an exhausting process, and a course where your emotions will go up and down. Not the ideal situation if your job requires a lot of interaction and diplomacy. :-)

It is possible, but you need to be very focused and honest with yourself. This is your life you are talking about.

There are protections available (depending upon the size of the company you work for), as you can be certified as disabled due to cancer treatment. If your employer has an EAP, take advantage of it, and discuss these options with the doctor. Many CCC's also have social workers who provide some employee assistance as well.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Jim,

I am the wife but I wanted to respond to you since it looks like my husband, Jeff , is starting chemo/radiation this week. He to wonders how he will feel and of course he is worried about not working being a self employed plumber in San Francisco. I keep telling him one day at a time. I have read so many accounts of some people working through treatment and how some couldn't get out of bed. You're not alone and we do understand your concern about not working. Take time to heal, I believe everything has a way of working itself out. Good luck with your treatment. We will be on the ride with you.

Jeff and Vanessa

I wish you much luck with your desire to keep working, however I think the majority of those who have undergone radiation find that around the 3rd or 4th week, getting out of bed is a significant challenge.

After my surgery, which was very extensive with several complications following, I was told by my radiologist that the rads would likely be worse than the surgery. I scoffed at that idea; little did I know how accurate his prediction was.

There was a period of nearly 6 weeks where I was out of bed long enough to use the washroom, get in the car and be driven to the hospital, or have a shower. That was it. I could not have driven myself to work, much less even gotten into the office from the parking lot. it was fully 6 months before I was able to return to work on a part time basis.

There certainly are those rare individuals that don't have a tough time with rads, but I think you're better to prepare for them to knock you down than to ignore the likelyhood and have the side effects catch you off guard.

my 2 cents. your mileage may vary
Wayne

I definetly couldn't work during radiation/chemo however I tried to go back to work immediately afterwards. It was difficult to get out of bed, the 1st day I pulled a full 8 hours but was sweating and clearly miserable. The next 2 days I could only do 4 hour shifts, sweating and miserable. Finally my owners wouldn't allow me back on property until I was "better", It's been a year and I'm still not working. Between the surgeries and effects from radx I'm all sorts of messed up...but seeing light at the end of the tunnel though!

Hang in there...but if you need to apply for SSI stop working as soon as you are able, it takes 5 months from the day you apply to start getting benefits if you qualify.

I am retired, but during rads and chemo, I kept as bsy as possible doing yard work and anythin else I could muter up. My car got waxed eveyother day it seemed. LOL I will say I was dragging my butt but I would make it thru each day, take my meds, try to eat then clean the house, It's tough and maybe going to do plumbing jobs tht aren't biggies, you could do. I even drove myself to the treatments. Interstate driving for about 30 miles. Think before you try anything .

During the worst part of my Tx taking a shower was the equivalent of running a marathon. I also couldn't concentrate on anything for very long. Keeping up with Judge Judy was a challenge.

[quote=davidcpa]During the worst part of my Tx taking a shower was the equivalent of running a marathon. I also couldn't concentrate on anything for very long. Keeping up with Judge Judy was a challenge. [/quote]

Great reply, LOL!

My husband owns his own business and is very, very independent and likes to take care of everything himself. He was convinced he would work through treatments, drive himself back and forth and continue to eat by mouth. Well........around week 3 he "hit the wall" and just getting out of bed to get to treatments was a chore. The last 5 weeks of his daily treatments I had someone drive him to and from treatments. He became totally dependent on the feeding tube around week 4 and just yesterday (7 weeks out of treatment) had his first bite of "real" food. Even with the feeding tube in John lost 30 lbs. He started at around 170 lbs.

My husband owns his own Upholstery business and has to communicate with his clients and vendors over the phone. Between the thick mucus making him gag and throw up and the pain when he talked, he was unable to talk for over a month. I guess like they say - pray for the best but be "prepared" for the worst.

Jim,
I hope you are in physical therapy after the neck disection. You really need this to help with the scarring and rebuild muscle that may have been damaged.

As for working, you mention IMRT but not chemo. Are you having chemo also? You may have a better chance of working for the first several weeks if no chemo. I had only XRT and went down like a rock after 9 days with high fever, but was also back to work at desk job, no talking, 3 weeks after rads. It was a couple weeks too early, but like you I might have lost my job if I hadn' returned.

Play it by ear. How much notice does your employer need to know you will be out? Ask your docs what to expect. Everyone is different so it is hard to tell. You are young so you may fare better.

Take care,
Eileen

Hi everybody,

I completely forgot about this post and then I was given the info that I could check under "my stuff" to see what I have posted!!!!
Thanks for all the feedback. My husband is going on week 3 and heading to his next chemo ( day 13 of rad) and finally stopped working. It just wiped him out plumbing all day. The little jobs were okay but he says his mind is foggy. So.....I am grateful that he is taking it easy. He walks a lot and gardens a little. He and I are starting to get the drift of this and realize that next few weeks are going to be a bit rough.

Vanessa

You can do it...just pop in here when you need the support.

I worked through the first seven weeks then I was so tired that even a shower tired me out. Believe me it was not easy I pushed myself a lot of time during the first seven weeks but I had set a goal for my self of five weeks and when I hit that I continued to go on to see how much I could push. You will know when it is time to call it quits for a while. Try it it may be the uplift/push you need. Only you know!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I also couldn't seem to keep my focus very long. Heck I found keeping up with Judge Judy was mentally challenging towards the end. lol