Today was Marvins last rad treatment. He was really tired and had a rough start to the day. But he made it and we are now ready to let his healing begin. They told us that the rad would work for up to 6 more weeks. They will be leaving his tube in until they see he starts eating by mouth and gaining weight. It will be a nice change for him not to have to travel 120 miles round trip each day for awhile. I am sure he can use the extra travel time for rest here at home. We were told to make sure that he keeps getting enough cans down and extra water. He seems to be having alot of thick mucus today(which has caused him to not be able to keep his food down that we got in him) We hope that by getting extra water in him this may help with the thick stuff. He thought he would sleep in a recliner so that he isnt laying down to see if that helps him. He had a total of 40 treatments.

Barb,
Congratulations on getting through treatment. The next few weeks will be the worst so keep him hydrated. A humidifier will help a lot also.

Hi Barb,

So glad to hear you and Marvin are finished. You will both get the much needed rest you need now after logging in all those miles. I think you spent about 160hrs on the road! That is almost 7 days! Clint hasn't been eating as much so I'm pushing the Jevity. He was doing pretty good until the last couple weeks.
Clint finished today also. He did get a couple injections to boost his RBC and WBC also. Now we go back in 2 weeks.
Mom got her PET Scan results today and it only showed the area in the lung. Her doctor is going to do a consult with a pulmonary doctor and go from there.
Vicki

Barb, so glad for you both that the rad is over. Here's a hint- keep some Pedialyte and mild flavored Gatoraid in your pantry. When Marvin is not feeling up to much nutrition or has problems with keeping food down, give him the Pedialyte or Gatoraid as a boost for electrolytes[gatoraid was hard on John's stomach sometimes -the Pedialyte never caused as problem] We would do 6 or 8 oz by peg every few hrs. on days he could not tolerate anything else. 40 tx. WOW! I know you both are really tired. Amy in the Oz

Congrats to you BOTH. There are still quite a few weeks of some ups and downs but you guys are on your way to recovery.

The next 2 to 3 weeks will be the worst so be prepared. Keep the water and food pouring in. Carnation Instant Breakfast VHC was a life saver for me.

Good luck both, the next week or two will be hard

Love Liz in the Uk

HI, We are 16 days since our last rad! It is still hard. Tom says he doesn't believe the 3 week number is magic. Everyone says it takes 3 weeks to notice a difference. I can't wait!! He still has a severe sore throat. I am encouraging him to keep tyring to swallow. You sould see the looks I get! Hang in there, the light is starting to shine through! God BLess

Lady joe

Hi, LJ- Not everyone I know says 3 weeks is the magic number and it certainly was not for us :rolleyes: The majic number is when the person enduring this tx. starts feeling better-different for everyone- 16 days out of rad is still "feeling the results of rad" for most. Trying to swalow is good- sleeping oar resting when you need to is good-keeping up with pain control is good-experimenting with food is good- taking your time is good. Amy in the Ozarks

I have to agree with Amy - there was no "magic" change. It was more like the least perceptible change imaginable. In fact, change in the early months was measured in three week increments for quite a while. It is a very slow healing process. I'm not sharing to dissapoint anyone, just to not let your expectations get damaged by the slowness of it all. A few months and you might be eating some solid foods and even tasting most of it!