Do you mind if I ask why you're trying to avoid the feeding tube? I ask because this was my original thought too. When I was at Week 4 like you, I felt OK. By my last treatment, I was in bad shape, wishing I had the tube. A few days later, I got one and my improvement was remarkable. My worst time was actually the two weeks after treatment ended. I slept all the time, the little bit of food I tried was awful, my neck skin was scorched and my throat hurt. But due to the feeding tube, I at least started gaining weight. Plus, I got that absolutely essential protein.

True story... About seven months prior to my diagnosis, a buddy of mine got the same diagnosis as I did. When I was diagnosed, one of the first things I did was call his wife for advice. The FIRST thing she said was, "get the tube." She watched her husband go from 210 to 140 lbs.

I know this is a difficult time and it's tough to know which decisions to make because you get so many different opinions. That's how I felt. I only had to have my tube in for a little over 4 months and I'm convinced I've healed so well because I got lots of calories and protein early on. If I had to do it over again, I'd get the tube at about Week 4-5 of my treatment. Things went downhill quickly after that.

Regardless of what you decide, I wish you the best. You can beat this!