I'm glad to see this thread, as I just finished my 3rd week of radiation and will be getting the 2nd chemo round in 3 days.

So far, the worst of the radiation has been the mouth/throat soreness. The edges of my tongue were severely nuked because the bite stick forced the outer edges hard against the inside of my lower teeth, just chock full of fillings bouncing the radiation right into my tongue. I used several pieces of gauze to try to buffer things, but it didn't do any good.

In desperation, I asked the RO about using a plastic mouthguard (like the type used at night for teeth grinders). Found an inexpensive one at the local drugstore, you just heat it up, form it to your upper or lower (designed for uppers, but works as well on the lower, where my problem was), and away you go. The doc looked it over and approved it. Fits comfortably, even with the bite stick, and the clear flexible plastic covers all the metal, protecting my tongue along the sides. Thought this hint might help someone else too, but be sure to ask your RO first.

As for the pain in my tongue and throat, the RO gave me a prescription for liquid painkiller (codeine based, I believe, and not much help except to make me sleepy) and for something called Barcus Solution. Rather thick, I can taste clove in it, and it has instantaneous numbing to the mouth and upper throat (you swish it around in your mouth, then swallow it). Seems to help reduce tongue swelling, too. I can't find any medical reference to this stuff, so don't know what all is in the compound. No info on the pharmacy sheet that accompanied the Rx either. But it helps, at least so far, and another good thing to ask your RO for.

Biggest surprise was I'm losing my hair by the fistful now. I first thought radiation overdose, but they insist I'd only likely lose hair in the areas they "shoot" through, like in front of the ears. Possible it's from my one dose of Cisplatin three weeks ago, I'll have to ask this coming Monday when I do dose #2.

And though I pretty much sailed through the first chemo, I'm seriously thinking of not doing the final 3rd round. If my mouth/throat is this bad not even halfway through my 7 weeks of radiation, what will it be like at the end of those 7 weeks when they want to add even more insult to injury?

In any event, if you have problems or questions, keep asking your doctors/nurses/techs!! Sometimes they're busy and don't want to spend the time, but you have the right to the information and don't have to suffer in silence.

Sharon
(T2 widsom tooth area on left, n0 soft palate mostly on left, but they're radiating 3 areas: left and right wisdom teeth areas, soft palate, throat/esophagus down to the first couple of inches of my lungs)