It has been 1 year 4 months post radiation for vocal cord cancer. So for the cancer has not returned. I still have a problem with dry mouth, heavy mucous, and a muscle cramp in my neck when I yawn ( has anyone else had this problem?). This is the second cancer I have been treated for due to Agent Orange exposure in Vietnam. I was radiated along with seed implants for prostate cancer 8 years ago, still no recurrence. I have put my life into God's hands, and try to enjoy every day to its fullest despite the constant dry mouth, hoarseness, and sleepless nights. Life can be good living with cancer, just look around, there is always someone in for worse condition than you, so keep a good outlook and pray for yourself and all of the other sick people in the world.

Radiation is the real kicker out of the three treatments that i had to have. Chemo, 35 Days of radiation and soft pallet removal from the radiation. I was stage four and had little chance to make it but I am here five years later and kicking butt. Go to the very best hospitals you can, keep the radiation to the very minimum ( be very specific in it's location) I have no taste in food, i swallow with water, no salivary glands at all so a water bottle is with me at all times, my neck cramps when I yawn or is cold outside. my tounge doesn't extend as far, Ilost my speech for a year and had to learn how to speak from scratch. With all of that said, i am the luckiest Irishman alive. i do fine now. I have adjusted to the changes and have accepted that i will never be the same as i was but I can be better then i was.
Do the radiation but be cautious, it will be hard for both of you but you will make it if you want to. You can always find support in those who have lived through it, we are here for you.

My husband went thru 7 weeks of radiation 2x's a day plus erbitux. Followup Pet scan showed clear, but cancer returned with a vengence 3 weeks later. Gave it our best shot, now in hospice care and living each day to the fullest.

I am new to the group but had surgery in March. I had a maxellectomy with forearm flap and 19 lymph node dissection.My question is they want to do Radiation as a preventative as all margins were clear but they won't start till I get all my dental work complete.Has anyone else had this problem?It has to do with Osteoradionecrosis...

I wanted to update everyone. It's been a year and a half since I last answered.
I did treatment everyday 2x for 2 months. In addition, I did chemo cysplatin and taxol (I may have messed up the spelling). As of today I am starting back on Chemo as the cancer is back in full force (proven by a biopsy taking during a craniotomy). My doctors have told me that there is no proven chemo that is known to kill adenoid cystic carcinoma. The chemo I am taking is in pill form (starting at 400 mg per day and after a week moving up to 600 mg per day). The med is called Nexavar aka Sorafenib.

This is my 1st day here. I was diagnosed with tonsilar cancer. Will start tomorrow with radiation session #18 of 35 scheduled. The worse part of this whole thing is the dry mouth and mucositis. The bad taste constantly in my mouth is sometimes overwhelming. Is there anything that works to combat this? I'm taking ensure and I hope I make it without going on a feeding tube. The only upside so far is the tumor is virtually gone, no sign of it. Will my taste come back after treatment ends and will the dry mouth finally go away? I pray it does....

I did 35 rounds of radiation and 3 rounds of chemo. Pet scan next week, then lymph gland removal same week. Some taste returning. Lost about 40 lbs even with the feeding tube. Havent been this skinny since high school. Dr says if you feel good, its a good weight. Bet I cant sell this diet. I heard that some saliva can come back after acupuncture, anyone tried this?

Dear Jarheadoo1,I just started posting so I hope I am doing this right. Just want to let you know about" Magic mouth wash." your doc has to order this. He should have his own version of it. but it has a numbing effect to it. the same ingrediate they use when they numb our mouth for dental work. Just can't remember the name this morning..

I will be watching your posting to see if the acupucture works.lol you go first. How long has it been since you finished your treatment?me might be the key to getting the tast back. My husband is on his 17th radiation treatment and 4 chemo. . so this is half way.

My wife has been bugging me about the acupuncture. She even gave me a coupon from an accredited school. I'm going to try it. Had surgery to remove dead lymph nodes in Dec. Pet scans now clear and no malignancy detected from surgery. My last treatment was in Sept.

Im surprised! THey remove dead lymph nodes? The things yoou learn.So you started all this in JUne 09? How is your throide? were they able to save that?
My husband just finished his Imrt radiation on the 1-6/2010. He blood counts are still pretty low. He finished cisplatin 105 mg once a week on 12-23-2009. I can see the feeding tube will be used for some time to come. he has lost about 28 lbs or so.
thanks for the hug,and good luck with the acupuncture.

My cancer had spread from the tonsil to the lymph nodes. After the chemo and rad it left a mass of dead tissue and my Dr felt that it would be better to remove than worry about whether it was changing. My thyroid has some growths on it that were biopsied and are considered normal. So now they are just watching me. I had my feeding tube removed as soon as I could swallow. Did not like the tube stuff at all. I swear I could taste that stuff more than what I can now put down my throat.

we had to dilute the formula 1/2 with water and 1\2 formula backed with an anti acid crushed up every 8 hours. The chemo oncologist gave him herp-y medicine. He nev er had hepies but they said from chemo and radiation he would get it in his throat. The thing that scares me the most is that they let his white and red counts stay low for so long. The reason I asked about the thyroid is tthey said it would more than likely stop working from radiation treatments in about a year. My husbands squamous cell also started in the tonsils and moved to the base of his tongue and went into his lympth nodes on both sides of the neck T2N2cMO.we are both very positive,they feel that they got it all. he will have his first scope on the 15th of feb. If they find anything then they will do a neck dissection .

When was his last radiation? They made me wait for the pet scan 3 months due to radiation residue and possible false positive result. Never told me anything about my thyroid giving out. Maybe there is a way to strengthen and help it heal. They told me neck disection was a possibility. I think they planned on doing it all along. Did your husband smoke? Whether they think we got this from smoking or the hpv virus sometimes determines the course of treatment. I never smoked. They also never confirmed the hpv.

his last radiation was 1/6/2010. he had 6 chemo's . True on the pet scan, he wont get that until 3 monthes after radiation, but they will do the black snake,the hose in the nose, 6 weeks after radiation. They told us about the radaition friying the thyroide but it dose take a least a year.