A caveat to Gary's post. Indeed there are some that can tough it out, and Gary certainly is a good advocate for the other side of the coin. But for all those reading this PEG thread, please look aback on all the previous ones as well. (Use the message board search engine under PEG.) This is not always the best choice. Personally, I see no need to chance poor nutrition and slower recovery for the small issue of getting a PEG, which when you are dealing with things much more severe (like radiation, major surgery and staying alive), is no big deal to get. And remember, Gary had IMRT radiation, which produces a lower exposure area of tissues that get nuked and develop mucocitis than those of us that are getting the full blast. Ability to return to normal food after treatment is dependent on many things. One for certain is that you do not allow trismus to affect your ability to open and close your mouth properly. This means that right from the get go you should be doing the stretching exercises with a TheraBite or stacks of tongue blades during treatment. I was on the PEG for just over a year, and when the tissues finally healed and the mucocitis went away, I had no trouble swallowing again. It wasn't like I had to relearn anything. Digtexas had severe fibrosis and narrowing of his esophagus from the radiation, no amount of toughing it through the pain of swallowing would have changed that issue which made it difficult for him to eat afterwards. Concentrate first on staying in balance nutritionally, and in total body mass. Gary is one tough guy for sure, but for my money I like to take the easy path when it is available.