Ahhhhhh, only one treatment left on Monday. Have the weekend to relax and baby my poor burnt mouth and throat. It has gotten worse in the last few days...again nothing like the tumor:)So I can't complain.
I will be honest, I have found this site hard to read in some spots. Until finding this place I had not heard the term reoccurence. I had always assumed it was a possibility but my surgeon said he got it all and the margins were close but clear. My rad and chemo oncologists said they were just for extra precaution. Sort of a just in case. I have faith I will never have to go through what I have just went through. It also does me no good to sit and worry worst case scenario...geez I am only 25.
Thanks again for all the support, very informative here too. Just a bit hard to take in some spots:)
Craig

Craig,

You are young and (let me assume) generally healthy. That puts you on the right side of the statistics here. No guarantees, but it sounds like your team is doing everything they can to improve your odds.

Get better, live well, laugh a lot. You've got 60 years to look forward to. Just don't smoke, OK?

Ken

Hi Craig,
I felt just like you when I started reading this message board. It scared me and made me think beyond cure, what would happen if I wasn't cured??
But, it also gave me the information I needed to KNOW what to do if the cancer came back.
You are getting ready to finish treatment so be prepared to feel worse and possibly experience some depression. Most of us here will say that the first month after radiation is the worst moment in treatment.
Take care,
Minnie

Why is the first month after treatment so hard? I am finding my mouth and throat getting more soar than before but I had a really rough go in the beginning of treatment. What can I expect???
I found mid treatment hard because I could not see an end to all of this, but now with only 1 treatment left it seems so much better. Thanks:)
Craig

Craig,
The radiation continues to work even after the last treatment, causing further side effects. Also, once treatment is done, patients tend to feel helpless, like they aren't doing anything anymore to fight the cancer. They become fearful and that's when depression can take hold. When we DO begin to feel better is when the depression can REALLY take hold, as now we are feeling well enough to worry! I know, it really sucks, doesn't it? Everyone's different, you may breeze through it. But I can almost guarantee that you will not wake up the day after the last treatment and all of a sudden feel noticeably better. Not trying to be negative, but it's crushing to look forward to and want something and then it doesn't happen.
Wishing you well at your last treatment. Do they do a bell ringing ceremony?
Minnie

While depression can and does happen, I think knowing about the 'bottoming out' after treatment will help prevent it from occurring. Celebrate the last treatment by doing something you like to do. Sleep in, go for a walk. Yes, the next three weeks or more will be difficult as the radiation keeps on giving. Try to get a little exercise and realize that it getting back to your new normal will take probably 6 months or more. It is a long road trying to figure out what you can eat especially as tastes and saliva vary daily. Hang in there, you can do it.

Take care,
Eileen

Thank you so much for all the help and great support. Yes the pain is getting worse, I have had to start taking Codiene again. My throat is really sore to swallow and my mouth in general feels pretty wierd. Thanks again so much. Take Care!!!!