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#70244 02-21-2008 03:18 PM
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There is a new forum for eating, speech, and nutrition issues. You can begin to post there now, but remember that this stuff has been discussed here since 2002, and it is a good idea to search all the forums for answers that you may be looking for since this has been repeatedly discussed over the years


Brian, stage 4 oral cancer survivor. OCF Founder and Director. The first responsibility of a leader is to define reality. The last is to say thank you. In between, the leader is a servant.
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Thanks Brian!


Donna
CG to Mom, dx 4/25/07 with tongue cancer,T3N0,tx began 7/6/07, 31 tx's of IMRT, 8 cycles of Erbitux. Brachytherapy, surgery, left neck dissection and temp trach placed all on 9/17/07, trach removed 10/17/07. ORN of jaw, late effect of radiation symptoms. **lost my beautiful mother on 5/5/11.
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way cool. I think everyone needs a little fun sometimes. And this is a way that we can share our sillier happier moments such as eating things we used to take for granted. Thanks Brian. Brenda


49 years young 9/2007 Squamous Cell Carcinoma 33 rad treatments. One year later, 9/17/2008 50 years old through the Grace of God. last check up all clear. Living life as it comes to me.
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I hope that it is not just a place to chit chat about this, but a forum that will concentrate all the posts related to the serious issues that this cancer creates for people in these areas in one easy to find them place. Everybody HAD to have an adjunctive therapies forum last year, we paid to alter the forums software, and it is hardly posted in at all. So let's see how this goes....


Brian, stage 4 oral cancer survivor. OCF Founder and Director. The first responsibility of a leader is to define reality. The last is to say thank you. In between, the leader is a servant.
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Brian,
I think I get it. My mom has had many diffiulties in all three areas, this is where I would tell someone that from her experience with all her radiation tx's she has now been diagnosed with malnutrition, even though her current weight is perfect for her frame. Since she can't eat properly, it is causing the pain to persist...?


Donna
CG to Mom, dx 4/25/07 with tongue cancer,T3N0,tx began 7/6/07, 31 tx's of IMRT, 8 cycles of Erbitux. Brachytherapy, surgery, left neck dissection and temp trach placed all on 9/17/07, trach removed 10/17/07. ORN of jaw, late effect of radiation symptoms. **lost my beautiful mother on 5/5/11.
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Donna,
My nutrionalist says my BMI is perfect for my frame but she is concerned that I still dropped three pounds. i eat as much and as often as I can but she said that since I have to drink so much water with each bite that I wasn't getting the nutrion she thinks I need. My mom suggested that I drink an ensure or boost with my meals instead of water. I haven't tried it yet I will tomorrow though. Think that would help your mom? just wondering.Brenda


49 years young 9/2007 Squamous Cell Carcinoma 33 rad treatments. One year later, 9/17/2008 50 years old through the Grace of God. last check up all clear. Living life as it comes to me.
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Hi,
Thanks. She does drink the Ensure with Boost-vanilla. Go for the boost, I believe it has about 100 calories more per bottle. Mom's RO wrote her a prescription for it to save her money--he ordered for 6/day --she never can drink that much as she is now eating as well, abuot 6 mini meals a day.


Donna
CG to Mom, dx 4/25/07 with tongue cancer,T3N0,tx began 7/6/07, 31 tx's of IMRT, 8 cycles of Erbitux. Brachytherapy, surgery, left neck dissection and temp trach placed all on 9/17/07, trach removed 10/17/07. ORN of jaw, late effect of radiation symptoms. **lost my beautiful mother on 5/5/11.
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Brian, Thank you SO much for that new forum. I think there is definitely a need for this, there are many people who come here facing serious long term issues (as well as the short term issues most people face) with these things. As someone with severe dysphagia and who still can't teach a 50 minute class without my voice dying (which is pretty frustrating when you are someone who loved the classroom and worked as a teacher--I now teach online but it's not the same), these issues are huge for me. And I've learned quite a bit along the way too which I hope will help others.

There was one thread in "after treatment issues" when I was talking with a new poster who was using a bougie (as I am trying to learn to do) to prevent strictures. I don't think it was copied in there. If I find it for you can we move it?

Nelie


SCC(T2N0M0) part.glossectomy & neck dissect 2/9/05 & 2/25/05.33 IMRT(66 Gy),2 Cisplatin ended 06/03/05.Stage I breast cancer treated 2/05-11/05.Surgery to remove esophageal stricture 07/06, still having dilatations to keep esophagus open.Dysphagia. "When you're going through hell, keep going"
Nelie #70300 02-22-2008 03:06 AM
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I found the thread in "After Treatment Issues". It is called "Has anyone had choking problems post tx?" and was begun in January of this year.

Nelie


SCC(T2N0M0) part.glossectomy & neck dissect 2/9/05 & 2/25/05.33 IMRT(66 Gy),2 Cisplatin ended 06/03/05.Stage I breast cancer treated 2/05-11/05.Surgery to remove esophageal stricture 07/06, still having dilatations to keep esophagus open.Dysphagia. "When you're going through hell, keep going"
Nelie #70545 02-25-2008 01:04 PM
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I thought the request for this new forum was supposed to be for just recipes and foods we can eat and when we can eat them. If we put all the peg, dyphasia, speech etc. problems here, what will be on the 'After treatment Issues' besides turkey neck. Maybe I'm wrong, but I thought the idea was to get what we can eat, with recipes into one forum so it was seperated from the PEG, can't eat issues, thus making it an easy reference tool without the need to plough through all the other problems when looking for food. I was hoping this would turn into the OCF Cookbook section.

Take care,
Eileen


----------------------
Aug 1997 unknown primary, Stage III
mets to 1 lymph node in neck; rt ND, 36 XRT rad
Aug 2001 tiny tumor on larynx, Stage I total laryngectomy; left ND
June 5, 2010 dx early stage breast cancer
June 9, 2011 SCC 1.5 cm hypo pharynx, 70% P-16 positive, no mets, Stage I
Eileen #70547 02-25-2008 01:45 PM
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To my mind, the issues of people who can't swallow well enough to even want a cookbook get buried in the "after treatment issues". I mean, it seems to me at least roughly biweekly someone new shows up with really serious long term swallowing issues: they are using a bougie or they have a stricture or they have been told if they have a dilitation their esophagus could be perforated or their esophagus has been perforated. And often the responses they get in "after treatment issues" are from people who lack knowledge about those issues and they probably have a hard time finding the threads from those of us who do also deal wioth those long term swallowing issues.

Though I am not one of the people who asked Brian for the new forum, and with all due respect to the people who want a cookbook, I think helping these people suffering long term issues with dypsphagia, which has it's own set of medical treatments and procedures, is really critical.

And I honestly can't see why you would need a whole forum for recipes. That should be a thread or two on a larger forum.

Besides, the description of the forum clearly states that it is a forum for discussing issues such as strictures and dypsphagia as well as eating related issues.

Nelie

Last edited by Nelie; 02-25-2008 01:46 PM. Reason: typos

SCC(T2N0M0) part.glossectomy & neck dissect 2/9/05 & 2/25/05.33 IMRT(66 Gy),2 Cisplatin ended 06/03/05.Stage I breast cancer treated 2/05-11/05.Surgery to remove esophageal stricture 07/06, still having dilatations to keep esophagus open.Dysphagia. "When you're going through hell, keep going"
Nelie #70551 02-25-2008 02:22 PM
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And chiming in with Nelie, if you are at a decent hospital you should be getting suggestions, handouts, recipes, etc. and advice from a nutritionist anyway. I had weekly meetings with my nutritionist, who also gave me samples of many liquid nutrition drinks to try out (actually with 2 nutritionists - the CCC that did my RT insisted that I meet weekly with theirs as well) . In the HMO I belong to it was automatic and actually mandatory. By all means look for recipes here but don't overlook resources that may be readily available to you.

I have to admit that there have been some very good high calorie drink recipes here and they should be made readily accessible. As Brian suggested there is a LOT in the archives about this.

Swallowing issues tend to be more individual in general since we all respond differently to treatment. The new forum hopefully will facilitate persons with similar experiences and solutions hooking up.

I am glad to see a forum for this since the nutritional aspect is of great importance for the healing process.

Why not concentrate the food suggestions, as Nelie suggested, in one, easy to find, thread.

There could actually be several other dedicated topics to this forum as well such as:
Pre PEG/Treatment
PEG/emotional aspect of having a tube hanging out of your body/installation/care and maintenance/optimal usage, etc.
Post PEG or Transitioning from PEG to soft foods
No PEG (believe it or not a few of us did it without a PEG and we had to eat too)
Aspiration issues and prevention
Esophogeal dilation
Obturators
The emotional aspect of not being able to enjoy food during treatment (this was a big one for me)

This is not all inclusive by any means...


Gary Allsebrook
***********************************
Dx 11/22/02, SCC, 6 x 3 cm Polypoid tumor, rt tonsil, Stage III/IVA, T3N0M0 G1/2
Tx 1/28/03 - 3/19/03, Cisplatin ct x2, IMRT, bilateral, with boost, x35(69.96Gy)
________________________________________________________
"You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes" (James 4:14 NIV)
Gary #70557 02-25-2008 04:11 PM
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There are also at least 2 cookbooks listed on the OCF webpage for books that have excellent recipes. But I like the idea of having just one thread in the forum for recipes. That way they are all in one place for anyone to find. If we do that, someone should definitely search pasr posts in other fora for the word "recipe" since I know good recipes (including mine for vampire-scaring cream of garlic/onion soup) have been posted elsewhere in the past.

We could also share info. that we get from nutritionists. As well as information about exercises that help strengthen swallowing muscles that can be done even when you are in too much pain to swallow (for eaxmple, the Shaker exercise, which has some good research showing how effective it is).

The nutritionist at my hospital was pretty hopeless by the way (but I was treated at a CCC radiation oncology outpost connected to a smaller hospital so it did not have all the staff a CCC would). I did get nutrition drink samples from the oncology nurse who worked with my RO and the nutritionist taught me the basics of PEG care and cleaning, but there could have been a lot better support.

Nelie


SCC(T2N0M0) part.glossectomy & neck dissect 2/9/05 & 2/25/05.33 IMRT(66 Gy),2 Cisplatin ended 06/03/05.Stage I breast cancer treated 2/05-11/05.Surgery to remove esophageal stricture 07/06, still having dilatations to keep esophagus open.Dysphagia. "When you're going through hell, keep going"
Nelie #70559 02-25-2008 05:51 PM
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I created some new sub forums in the eating forum. They can be found as links under the new eating forum. I could add more that seem reasonable, and Gary has offered a good list. Let's start here and see how it works. I don't want these boards to become so complex that they are hard to navigate.


Brian, stage 4 oral cancer survivor. OCF Founder and Director. The first responsibility of a leader is to define reality. The last is to say thank you. In between, the leader is a servant.
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