Hi, I posted here a few weeks back about my sister. It ends up that she saw an ENT doctor and he says he sees signs of a tumor at the base of her tongue and an MRI is scheduled for Sunday, tomorrow to confirm. 2 years ago she was diagnosed with oral cancer. She already had major radiation and now she can only get chemotherapy. Whats worse is her throat is extrmemely painful, she can't eat and is using a feeding tube. Because of this she cant take high doses of chemo because she can't vomit. First they said it was scar tissue and no re-occurence and it took several months for them to say it is a re-occurence. Has anyone had Chemo for oral cancer on this board? did it shrink the tumor. Has anyone hear or used alternative medicines? Any info is appreciated.

Thank you

Eli, I'm sorry I can't help you. I have only had surgery for my oral cancer. I know that there are others that participate on this board that have had chemo and they should be able to give you some information.

To all of you that have had chemo, please reply to Eli.

My thoughts are with you and your sister. Please keep us posted.

Take care.

Anne

Eli,
Yes, definately chemo can help! My mom's original cancer was on the base of her tongue and spread to lymph nodes......they used RAD to shrink the tumors, but chemo for the cancer on her tongue (which was a late stage 4)..She also was on a feeding tube, since she was unable to swallow at all. I am happy to tell you that by the time she was operated on, which was 6 weeks after finishing RAD and chemo, the doctor said there was absolutely NO sign of cancer on her tongue. So, please, even though it seems discouraging to you now, have faith! I can't remember what chemo she had..I know one was Cisplatin, and as far as worrying about the nausea, I understand. However, I can honestly tell you my mom had NO nausea whatsoever, which is rare, I think. There were 2 meds she was given for the nausea..one was Compazine, which she never needed to use, and the other was one that is hard to get (because of insurance.it is very expensive), but it definately worked! It's scary, knowing they can vomit, especially with the tube, because of the pain, and because you are unsureof where it will come out of! But Iin our experience, the chemo was a blessing! Feel free to email me if I can help with any questions you may have! Lots of luck and prayers to you both!
Brooke

Hi Eli.............First, let me say how sorry I am to hear of your sister's recurrance of Oral Cancer. I know this must be a difficult time in all of your lives right now; the waitng, the wondering and the worry of how everything is going to turn out. We've all been there and as you already know, the weeks ahead might be more than just a little bumpy. I have no great words of wisdom but I do hope you find this forum, and this board, a place of some comfort during the next few weeks. We'll be here to answer questions, listen, and of course cheer you and your sister on. Good luck on the journey,

As far as Chemo, you might want to go back to the Home Page and click under the heading Oral Cancer in the News; scroll down and you'll find a section that deals with surgery, RAD and chemo. I found the information there to be pretty informative---anyway, it is a place to start.

I had chemo back in 1997 but my chemo was used more to "clean up" any lingering cancerous cells that might be hanging around after surgery. I was given the chemo cocktail of cisplatin and 5fu, both common drugs given with oral cancer. So my experience with Chemo is a bit different than what your sisters might be. Wish I could be of more help to you.
Keep us posted on your sisters treatment and recovery, I wish you the best! Sending good thoughts your way..........Sincerely, Donna

Thank you to everybody for posting your kind words.

Tody she will have an MRI to determine the tumors location and stage, size, etc. The from there they will start chemo.

I definately have hope and she is very strong and positive, I know somewhere out there, there is a cure for everybody.

Thank you