UPDATE to my original post on this topic...

I ended up having a total of 10 dilations all together. The last one was in December of 2008. My esophagus seems to be holding its own fairly well. Although there are limitations in my eating caused by a lack of saliva, I am now able to eat a variety of foods and can swallow fairly well.

A few of my favorite dishes:

Pasta salad (One box of shell pasta cooked soft, 2-4 cut up green & yellow peppers, LOTS of cut up fresh tomatoes, Kraft Free Italian dressing). Keep in fridge. I like to heat mine up before I eat it because it goes down easier when it's warm and it's more soothing to my throat that way.

Beefaroni [like spaghetti but easier to eat] (One box of elbow macaroni cooked soft, ground lean hamburger, chunky garden style spaghetti sauce).

Tossed Salad with fruit (Chopped lettuce (the crunchy parts of the leaves are easier to eat), quartered tomato slices, peeled diced cucumbers, sliced canned peaches or canned pineapple chunks, Kraft Free Italian dressing (or dressing of choice). The fruit adds a bit of sweetness.

Tip: I found that I can eat most kinds of meats if I take a small bite with a fork full of green beans or other soft moist veggies and chew them together. The veggies add the needed extra moisture to the meat that we no longer have in saliva.