Dan, I add my welcome. You sound like a very brave guy and I'm confident you'll come through your upcoming ordeal. When I started to read your post I felt as though I were reading about myself at that point - more or less the same age, and same height and weight!

There are some significant differences though. I had an unknown primary and a neck dissection, and no chemo.

With those provisos in mind I can only tell you about my own experience. I would not have been able to travel in the couple of months after the end of treatment. I made my first plane trip about 3 months out. OTOH, I know someone in florida who just finished a course of treatment like yours - chemorads and no surgery - and he was stage IV BOT. His brother tells me that he's back working part time 3 weeks after the end of treatment, and they've been out to lunch and dinner.

All of which says that each of us is different. If possible, play it as it goes. You'll have a much better sense a couple of weeks in.

Also: I was one of those people who didn't get a PEG. And wish I had. So I think you're doing the right thing. Getting it early as Maria suggests sounds like a wise choice to me. If you do go to the weddings - and I surely hope you'll be able to - having a place to lie down nearby as Klo recommends is a good idea too.

We're all pulling for you and are here to help.


David 2
SCC of occult origin 1/09 (age 55)| Stage III TXN1M0 | HPV 16+, non-smoker, moderate drinker | Modified radical neck dissection 3/09 | 31 days IMRT finished 6/09 | Hit 15 years all clear in 6/24 | Radiation Fibrosis Syndrome kicked in a few years after treatment and has been progressing since | Prostate cancer diagnosis 10/18