Ok. Update and a question for you.

Update.

Had my 10th of 33 radiation treatments today. Side effects are making themselves known. Most pronounced effects are, dry mouth, mucous, a little redness around the skin, a few more sores in my mouth, and swelling of my mouth - tongue and cheeks primarily (more on this later).

Other than that I have been feeling relatively well. I have been taking all nutritionist orally. I flush my peg every day with water to make sure it is flowing properly and to provide a little extra hydration. Most calories are coming from soups, smoothies, I protein, and a little bit of solid food. Weight has more or less stabilized and I am able to battle weight loss with increasing iprotein consumption.

Still getting around well. Rode my bike to radiation appointment today - doc said this was a good sign. It wasn’t a long ride and it was a beautiful day here in Toronto.

Next week is the second chemo instalment. 1st series went really well, thanks to some well timed anti-nausea medications. Had a home nurse for post chemo saline flush. A bit of a hassle, but I put up with it.

Questions:

1. I think that if I could chew solid food I could easily swallow it. My problem is that the rads have increased the swelling and soreness in my mouth. When I try to chew solids, I end up biting my tongue or cheek - kind of painful. Anyone have any suggestions to avoid biting tongue? It is pushing me to a full soft diet and I would prefer to eat solids if I could.


I can’t tell you how helpful all of the information and advice from the forum has been. Thank you all for your efforts.