Va,

First off it's better to start your own Post by entering the Forum that best describes your Post and near the top you will see New Topic. Click on that and type away.

To add your particulars under your Signature Line, go to the top of a page and enter the My Stuff tab and then click on My Profile and then go down to the Signature and type what you want and be sure to Submit it to save it. You can then modify it forever.

With that said, welcome and of course I'm sorry that you're here but you are fortunate that you found this site as it will be as valuable to you as your Tx.

As you can see I also had BOT with mets to my nodes and I also tested positive for HPV. Studies have indicated that the majority of Oral Cancers involving the BOT and Tonsils test positive for the presence of the HPV virus.

I too had Cisplatin but 2 years ago the practice was to administer 3 larger doses 3 weeks apart instead of the now more commonly used weekly approach. I had pretty bad side effects from the larger dose but others that have gotten the weekly seem to fair better.

One thing to keep in mind throughout your Tx and recovery is that all of us can react differently to our Tx so when we tell you what to expect, it's usually from our personal experiences so you may respond differently.

The first 2 weeks or so of rad will be fairly routine. You may even say "what's the big deal". Beginning around week 3 +/- you may start to loose your taste and your mouth may start to get sore. When that happens you will naturally loose your desire to eat but you must and I want to emphasize MUST continue to eat and drink everyday throughout your Tx. I like to say 3000 cals and 48oz of water each and every day. You didn't mention a Peg. Some of us get one and some of us don't. Regardless of that decision it is equally important to continue exercising your swallowing muscles daily. You won't have a choice without the Peg so it's important to remember that if you do get the Peg.

As you progress in your Tx you may loose your thin saliva and then your thick saliva as well leaving you with what is called Dry Mouth. Your pain may also get worse so it's important to stay on top of your pain meds. Again not all pain meds work the same for everyone so don't give up if at first something doesn't work.

Your hair on the back of your neck will likely fall out but it will grow back usually during the first year of recovery. Your whiskers may also fall out and mine never came back under my chin but they did above the chin line.

Usually the first 2 weeks post Tx are the worst time and then it's like one day you finally walk out of a tunnel and you begin your recovery where over time you will likely regain most of your taste and most of your saliva.

Whew, I'm tired of writing. I hope I didn't overload you with to much stuff going in but we'll be here throughout your trip so ask as many questions as you want. You can also vent like we all did.

Hang in there and before you know it you'll be an seasoned "expert" just like us.