David, LOL! I hope she beats you on eating pizza anyway.....

Liz, I'm so sorry to hear Mary is having problems with strictures. I hope the dilatation works the first time. Assuming there are no complications, it is not a bad procedure as procedures go, though she should be prepared for a really sore throat for a few days afterwards that may unfortunately make it even harder for her to eat --but in my experience that phase only lasts for a few days.

I found the easiest things to get down during that post-dilatation time were mild creamy soups or chicken broth. I should say, though, that by the time I had the first surgery for my stricture I was a year post-radiation (thanks to my local hospital messing up and not catching the stricture during my first modified barium swallow test 4 months out from radiation) so my sense of taste was not too badly damaged from radiation anymore. I say that because some people here have said that soups (at least canned soups) tasted really really salty post-radiation and I had found that to be true too earlier in my recovery.

Anyway, I'll keep Mary in my thoughts as she goes through the dilatation. She may find it MUCH easier to eat once she has it. Hope you let us know how it works out.

Nelie