You seem to be managing well. The last couple of weeks of treatment and the first two post treatment appeared to be the hardest for my husband. It wasn't quite "more of the same," but "more of the same and then some." Keep up the hydration, rest when you can and stay active within the limits of your stamina -- even just walking around the house is better than sitting in a chair all the time. We will be cheering you on.

You are heading into the dark zone so do keep up on the cals and water each day. Don't skip something today promising to make it up tomorrow because that never happens. Stay on top of the pain. What patch dose are you on? Above all stay mentally positive. At worse you only have a month or so left and then we say you walk out of that tunnel.

Fentanyl patch current is 12 mg and 25 mg are on the shelf for future use. I think the issue was going from 5 mg Oxycodone 1X every 3 to 4 hours to the 25 mg patch. Body could not handle the jump. Pain is under control and I'll take to heart advice not to put off thinking it can be made up.

That's a low dose. I have seen people on this site that were on 200 mg so you have plenty of cushion if needed.

My wife use to come home every day and ask me how many cans of this and that I had swallowed and I would lie to her if I didn't do all I was supposed to do. BAD decision but of course lying to one's wife never ends up being a good decision.

Sometimes it takes a few tries to get the dosage, and medication right. Usually they start at a lower dosage, and work up the ladder, and takes a few days for the body to get used too. Otherwise, everything else seems to going well.

Be very careful with the fentayl patch! When I was about week 4 I was on 75mg of the fentanyl patch. I was up to 150mg for about a week and then backed down to 125 then 100 etc. Always go slowly up and back down with this medication and be sure to follow all directions exactly. No long hot showers or baths, never cut, rip, fold, tear, etc the patch, always place it on a different spot every 72 hours.

Make sure you are getting at least 2500 calories and 48 oz of water every single day. Right about now is when the skimping begins and its all downhill from there. No matter what you do, your daily goal of 2500 calories and 48 oz of water needs to be your top priority. Push yourself no matter how difficult it becomes you must take that in every day. Check with your doc and getting hydrated in the chemo lab. You probably can use the extra fluids, it will make you feel much better.

Hang in there!!!

I'm following your progress closely - start my treatment next week. My thoughts are with you and I'm sending all my best wishes your way. You're nearly there and although it seems that these last few weeks of tx and first few after are the hardest remember that you're a heck of a lot closer to finishing than you were.

Hope you've got something nice planned to look forward to (once you're up to it)

James, thank you so much for your "blow by blow". My husband's treatment is very similar to yours, and we are about 2 weeks behind you. I am relaying the info from you to him, to encourage him to stay on top of the side effects of chemo/radiation, especially when it comes to keeping up with the hydration/nutrition.
Barbara (wife and helpmate), Richard (landscaper/surfer)

Week 5 is now complete. 1 more to go. To be honest I feel fortunate to feel as well as I do right now. Pain is still a major issue to deal with along with increased secretions. I am still at a total of 7 pounds lost over 5 weeks(3.5% of total) and now feed daily through tube. 5 cans of Jevity 1.5 and normally 1 of Myoplex (for protein). I am able to drink > 80 oz. of water each day by mouth and finish the day with an 800 calorie milkshake by mouth. I made the choice to use the tube after a discussion with my nutritionist last week. The number of calories is extremely important balanced out with the need to exercise the muscles in the throat. I was not able to get enough calories with what I was able to eat and the effort to force food down was counter productive. Through tx I have been able to take all water, Kefir probiotics, ice cream and milkshakes by mouth. I have performed all exercises my speech therapist gave me and I received her blessing to go with the feeding tube since throat muscles were being used and exercises followed.

I am working through the secretions by rinsing with Biotene every 2 hours. The first few times I did this were not pleasant but you get used to the feeling and now it is easy.

I am still managing pain with Oxycodone 15 mg every 3 to 4 hours. Done with Fentanyl patches. Wednesday I went back to the 25(s) and Thursday had panicked breathing, nausea, drowsiness and loss of appetite. Friday I removed the patch and Dr. said some people have difficulty with that drug if they have no previous pain med usage.

At this point in Tx I am thankful for thoughts and prayers - this has kept me ahead of the curve and motivated to do everything necessary to be successful. Follow the recommendations of your Dr. and suggestions from this group proactively and you will prevent unnecessary setbacks.

Wow, only 7 pounds lost, you are doing great! I am so happy to hear things are going this good, I was a bit worried since I hadn't heard much. Keep up the good work. Only one more week of treatment left then a couple more difficult weeks and then on the road to recovery! Big hugs!