My husband is now 10 weeks post rad and while able to take in some water & iced tea, he still has a lot of mucous at back of throat that’s hard to clear and the dry mouth is in full force. Trying to keep up with close to 2500 calories in via g-tube supplement and also getting IV hydration 2X/week, running cool mist vaporizer at night. He’s scared to try soft foods for fear of choking. He wonders if his salivary glands will ever return to even some sense of normal.

Any similar experiences/thoughts? We appreciate all of you!

Good morning, Arden. We seem to be on a similar path, you and me. My husband finished treatment August 1 and has many of the same issues you mention. He says one minute he has so much saliva he can't swallow it all and a few minutes later he's so dry that he feels like he's going to swallow what little tongue he has left. The mucous issue seemed to be improved so he stopped taking the Mucinex - bad idea! He's back on that and it seems to help a bit. Bob also got the ok to start trying some soft foods about two weeks ago but he hasn't tried any yet. I think he is afraid of choking or aspirating. It kind of scares the heck out of me too. He is taking in about 2500 calories through the PEG so his weight is holding steady (he even gained a few pounds so that's good). I don't really have any advice for you, just wanted you to know that someone out here is going through similar things. I keep telling Bob it will get better and I hope it does for you and your husband too!

Hi Eileen—thank you for your response! I read it to Ken and it made us both feel better that you understand what’s going on. I’ve been giving him liquid guafenisine to thin the mucous, but we’ll try the Mucinex to see if that helps more. I assume you crush the tablets for his PEG? I’m not aware of it in liquid form.

Our best to you and Bob, and let’s stay in touch!
Nedra

Sorry for screwing up your name, Nedra! The mucinex does come in liquid form. It's usually near the NyQuil in the pharmacy. The pharmacist just told me to make sure it's not the extended release or overnight version. Also, some of them come with Tylenol in them so I had to be careful about that. But you're right - it does help. Let's definitely keep in touch. Best to you and Ken!

Thanks, Eileen! I will check that out.😀