I have been lurking here for weeks! I have learned a lot. My husband 43 was diagnosed on January 9th with stage 3 tounge cancer. No smoking or drinking history. Everything happened so fast that I really didnt understand all that was happening. So...this fourm was really helpful. On Feb 6th my husand had 2/3 of his tounge removed, a radical neck dissection (50 nodes)( one micro cell found in one node) and a flap from his chest pulled up to rebuild. On Feb 25th he had a peg feeding tube put in. Swallowing was not really possible. He is now on his 14th day of radiation. My ? is is there anyone out there that had these swallowing problems in the begining that can now swallow anything? When we ask the speech and swallowing therapist she just says "I am hopeful". What does that mean? My husband is starting to think he is wasting his time in therapy. They also said that the radiation can also effect the swallowing overall. I really try to encourage him about the swallowing, but it gets hard when you really dont believe it yourself!

Thanks!
Cheryl