Amy:

Your husband's Dx and Tx regimen sounds like a carbon copy of mine. I was Dx in April this year and began rad and chemo last week of May. Completed Tx end of July and had first CT scan in early september that was clear. Just had second CT last week and clear again! I had the neck dissection with removal of large mass of nodes and tissue and left with a 3" incision on 9/20 and all was clear! No real problems with neck at all. Incision was glued and it's hardly visible already. The immediate area is still numb and my ENT says may stay that way up to a year.

The entire ordeal is trying for the entire family but you will survive and be stronger for it by time it's over. If like me, the PEG tube was perhaps the overall worst thing to deal with. Husband needs to keep swallowing as much as possible during Tx to keep things working.

Bill D.

Amy
I had right side of neck taken cancer had masticide on one lymp node, When threy were in there they hit muscle which help raise and lower my right arm. It not that big of deal, but can not do my job because of it. Still can pick my nose. Hope the radiation will shrink it you will not need surgery. The Radiation was worse worse than the sugery. Being that for me now this took place in 2005, it does not that bad at all.
I did not choose the peg, and lost 110 lbs that sucked. I needed to loose a little but went past my goal by 60lbs. Everything but my arm is OK
Good luck
Chris

Amy,

I should have mentioned that I needed about 3 months of physical therapy in order to regain full function of my left arm. I had stiffness and limited raising ability due to damage to the nerves and muscles on that side. All the fucntion did return, but required twice daily exercises in addition to the PT.

Jerry

Hi Amy,

Your husbands condition sounds just like mine. His treatment regimin is exactly like mine. 35 Rad traeatments, 7 to rounds of Chemo. I was lucky to have the peg and very little problems with it. It is no fun to use, but makes a world of differrence. It saved my life. I lost over 80 lbs. The worst part for me was the every day radiation. My burns were quite bad. Xlcair or other prodcuts will help his skin.

From my understanding, the only way to tell if the cancer is gone is through pathology. The patholgy can only be done once the lymph nodes are removed. A CT scan will only show a million cells or more. When my wife & I figured this out, the surgery was a no brainer for us. I had little or no nerve damage. PT once or twice a week for two months cleared any problem up. I started lifting weights two weeks after my neck disection. I still have little or no feeling on the right side of my neck, but the scar is hardly visible. No one notices unless I point it out.

It will a tough fight for your husband, but at his age, he can handle it. We are here to lend support when you need it.

Steve

Amy,

I was treated at Moffitt Cancer Institute, a CCC, and was told surgery was not needed so I hope they are correct.They did say surgery would still be an option if the chemorad didn't work.

Amy,

I was standing in your shoes about 18 months ago. Ken had lymph nodes removed on the right side of his neck and 5 came back positive. Overall, the surgery was not a cake walk. Ken had to have his jugular vein tied off on the right side because one lymph node was tangled around it and he had to have another one 'scrapped' off the base of his skull. I wanted to mention this because you need to know what questions to ask about any medical procedure (pros/cons). The surgery was painful, but Ken recovered very quickly from it. Ken is a fishing guide and we both talked to his ENT about how critically important it was for Ken to keep his arm mobility.

I encourage you to read through the "getting through it project" section of this board. You will see many postings about 'what I wish I had known' - many from the caregiver's perspective.

Hang in there. You are not alone in this fight. We are all right here any time you need to chat.

Carol R.

Amy,
My new husband of 2 months has exactly what your husband does and the treatment is the same. He had a radical neck dissection on both sides and they removed an 8 cm. tumor - He is Stage IV and is into his 2nd week of chemo and radiation. The neck dissection was a cake walk for him - I'm so afraid of the radiation as I have been doing an extreme amount of research - I have been watching this sight and find it very scary, but know that I'm not alone. Does anyone have any info. on the hyperbaric chamber? They use it for head/neck cancer from the research that I have done, but don't have any comments from anyone that has used it.

Paula

DEar Paula, I think you need to do more reading on the hyperberic chamber. It is used [in my understanding] to promote the healing of wounds that otherwise will now heal. We have been told that patients who have any residual cancer or have not been declared totally cancer free are NOT candidates for the chamber because it would accelerate the growth of cancer cells. And while radiation is a scarey thing, it is doable and as many people here will tell you, one can recover and go forward to a good life. Wishing you all the best luck. Amy

Paula,

Post your own topic re radiation concerns and you will receive tons of replys.

It's also best to describe your H's Dx and Tx under your signature so that each time you post you won't have to repeat yourself and the readers will be better able to respond. Simply go to My Profile and either add your signature or edit it.

Also you can do a search on just about any topic like the chamber but Amy is correct. It is most often used my Oral cancer patients after cancer free to promote gum healing, etc.

You and your H will have many questions during his Tx and this site will prove as valuable as any doc or med you come in contact with.

David,
I'll be happy to do that, however can you help me with the abbreviations?

IMRT x 35...what is that?
Cisplastin x 3 concurrent...what is that?
Tx....in my world stands for Texas, what is that?

any other abbreviation explanation would be helpful.