First, know that YOU CAN DO THIS! If you've been reading this forum, you know there are many of us who have been through this and come out the other side. Yes, food tastes bad and will for awhile, but that gets better in time. The mucositis (sores in the mouth) are EXTREMELY painful, but temporary. The pain can be controlled with lidocaine, liquid vicodin and even fentanyl patches if necessary. Your RO and MO should be monitoring you closely and providing pain meds as well as mouthrinses/washes (like Miracle Mouthwash) that will help. Fatigue is normal right now. Radiation and chemo take a huge toll on your body. It was all I could do just to get to treatments everyday. The rest of the time I was either in bed or crashed on the couch. It got so bad toward the end of treatments, I had to be driven to the MO for daily IV hydration for two weeks. I did not have a tube and couldn't swallow and was nauseous. (By way of comparison, yesterday I was eating taquitos. It does get better, much better.)

Looking back now, I remember how bad it was, but it still seems like a blip on the screen now that the worst is over. Each days treatment is one closer to the last one. Stay in touch, keep reading and posting. smile


dx 2/13/06. modified radical neck dissection 3/9/06 multiple biopsies of upper airway and direct laryngoscopy. 1 of 47 lymph nodes positive for metastatic undifferentiated carcinoma (lymphoepithelioma). Unknown primary. Finished radiation 5/24/06.