Leonard,

I'm sorry to hear about what your father is going through. My sister also slowly lost the ability to swallow and was given a PEG tube. She had lost so much weight and hadn't begun her radiation or chemo, so there was a real concern about her ability to to survive the treatment. It made a huge difference and she was also given oral (liquid) morphine for pain (ear pain) management, it's placed under the tongue. It must be taken with food, or it can cause vomiting and having the PEG made is easy. Pain meds will cause constipation, so be sure to stay on top of that, or it can lead to vomiting. She also used a portable suction machine, since she lost the ability to swallow it made cleaning the saliva out so much easier. Hope this helps and I wish the best to your dad and you.

Nancy