Hi Cherry, has Larry been prescribed Prochlorperazine (Stemetil) for nausea after chemo? What I have learned is that the patient really needs to take the Stemetil if he feels queasy. The advice we have got from doctors and nurses has always been to get ahead of the nausea and not wait until the vomiting starts. Is there any chance that he is dehydrated, especially if he is vomiting -- that can cause him to become confused.

John never had a pump, he just pushes the feed in using a 60 ml syringe. Maybe ChristineB or others who have had experience with a pump with post with suggestions.

Larry's mouth will be dry for a long time, that is unfortunately the effect of radiation. Even if he can't swallow, have him rinse his mouth with water or flat club soda frequently. That will help him feel better. If his mouth doesn't feel too raw, he can suck on a Xylitol mouth drop and spit out the saliva.

The creatinine level is an indication of kidney function and doctors, nurses and even our pharmacists constantly watched it. I don't know what they do about elevated levels but they should be the ones to tell you what needs to be done.

Because he has had aspiration pneumonia, for the time being, don't worry too much about getting him to swallow. He should exercise his swallowing muscles by doing dry swallows and his swallowing exercises to keep the muscles in shape. In John's case, eight weeks after treatment he was still unable to swallow because his epiglottis was so swollen from the radiation that it could not move. The surgeon told me that if John had knocked back a box of feed at that point, he would have drowned. Our MO also very bluntly told me that forcing him to swallow was something very dangerous. So, you really need to be careful about the swallowing.

You have to look after yourself too and make sure you get enough sleep at night. I used to go sleep in the spare room after the evening routine was done. I gave John a bell that he could ring if he needed me. That was the only way I could have a few hours to myself and really rest. It is a long road and you must conserve your energy so you can keep going.