Kris, look into self-Heimlich, where you use your own fists, back of chair, etc., to DIY -- Or should that be Auto-Heimlich.

http://healthguide.howstuffworks.com/heimlich-maneuver-on-self-dictionary.htm

BTW, my son took the very comprehensive Wilderness First Responder course (He takes inner-city kids on controlled canoe trips in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area in Minnesota in Summer and wanted to have the skills) and was informed that Heimlich is trademarked or something, so there is likely a generic name for it.

I was looking into the throat dilation because I was having more difficulty swallowing, not less, but bottom line was that it was my latest "stealth" tumor causing the problem, so be sure you are also getting a good look at the area by your Docs -- Being down the throat, it is harder to see and feel than up in the mouth region.

BTW, there's more to staging than meets the eye -- It has several variables including tumor size and spread to lymph nodes, etc., so it is not necessarily a "Fatality Index" -- A large, slow growing, strongly differentiating tumor might have a high T number but actually be less dangerous than a small, aggressive tumor with no differentiation and on the edge of metastasizing to other systems like lymph or nerves.

Here's more info on staging for Oral Cancer:

http://www.oralcancerfoundation.org/facts/stages_cancer.htm