Hi:

My dad has a suction machine and we did use it quite a bit at the begining but maybe once a day now. My mother puts saline water (I think) down he trach and he is able to cough up most of his mucus. When he first got the trach it was a nightmare, we had to suction him constantly and the healthcare providers told us if he got a plug he could choke. Now it is just the mucus, he always sounds like he has a cold or allergies. Oral cancer has to be the worst of all the cancers. My dad has a trach, he still has a feeding tube and the constant fear of reoccurence!!