Amy, we have had a cool mist humidifier since last year when Don first started radiation. Shortly,after chemo started, I purchased a personal steam enhaler and a vaporizer. The enhaler worked briefly and the steam affected my husband's previously radiated skin. My husband finally agreed to rinsing and gargling with lidocaine. I mix 1/2 tsp of lidocaine with 2 tsp of water. My husband tells me that the lidocaine helps ease the pain. As I said his throat is raw. If John's throat starts to bother him and he cannot swallow, ask your doctor about Lidocaine. No matter what, your husband needs to sip water as much as he can to keep his swallowing muscles strong. The lidocaine helps ease the pain. Amy, I do not know if your husband has a problem opening his mouth. I did have my husband do jaw exercises 3x a day and it really helped. He can open his mouth wide but unfortunately he has dysphagia.
You might want to access www.nidcr.nih.gov
National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research. My dentist told me about this site and I got loads of info. Eileen