Welcome Keith (I got your first name from your yahoo e mail address - let me know if I have it wrong!)

Your treatment is exactly the same as mine for my first cancer which was 9 years ago. Ed is exactly right with keeping up with all the physical therapy and tongue exercises. It is definitely a "use it or lose it" situation.

Do you still have a peg? Are you eating/drinking by mouth? Has the pneumonia been because you have aspirated something into your lungs? Let us know what the answer to these questions and we can be of more help.

For me, I never had a peg but when I started eating after surgery it was an extremely SLOW process. Eating a bowl of soup took an hour. Gradually, that improved. I was told that in addition to doing your daily word exercises for your tongue - the other excellent exercises are talking and eating. Both are natural exercises for this method.

Let us know, and welcome. You have not had an easy road so far and recovery takes time. Be easy on yourself.

Donna