Srich63300's Journey:
Survivor: Head & Neck/Throat Cancer
Patient Info: Finished active treatment more than 5 years ago, Diagnosed: over 16 years ago, Female, Age: 76, Stage IV
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Experience Icon Descriptions
Procedure: Drag this icon to show a procedure.
Radiation: Drag this icon to show a specific radiation therapy experience.
Drug Therapy: Drag this icon to show a specific drug therapy experience.
Clinical Trial: Drag this icon to show a clinical trial experience.
Side Effect: Drag this icon to show experience with a specific side effect.
Oh No: Drag this icon to show when something bad happened (e.g., cancer’s back, lost job).
Celebration: Drag this icon to show when something good happened (e.g., last treatment, hair is back).
Loss: Drag this icon to show a time of loss (e.g., lost hair, lost loved one).
Decision Point: Drag this icon to show a time when you had to make a tough decision.
Other Care: Draft this icon to show a time when you needed other care (e.g., hospice, psychotherapy).
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Other
Oh No
diagnosis of 2nd cancer, not related to first - took a year to find it...how much easier or different would it have been if it had been found sooner?
Chemotherapy
Drug or Chemo Therapy
cisplatin was relatively easy, although much more dangerous - 5FU required a pump for a week at a time...another tube to deal with, along with PEG tube, etc...required a bit of adjusting, inconvenience in accomodating tubes, but with anti nausea meds, not too uncomfortable
External radiation
Radiation
breast cancer radiation was not much, sunburn type burn, manageable - head neck cancer radiation was something else again - being covered by the necessary mask, bolted to a table, neck stretched when you are already having trouble breathing and swallowing is another issue...not painful in itself...just those issues...did not lose hair except on back of head from exit radiation...
Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment
Other Care
Can't say enough about this to heal - had third and fourth degree burns inside throat and outside neck - helped immensely with healing these to enable me to get back closer to "normal"
Body part/function
Loss
first loss is control of life...second is feeling somewhat scared and abandoned when treatment is finished...third is various adjustments to be made to life with side effects...takes a good year to get back energy, etc...in my case...scar tissue in throat, lack of salivary glands, learning to eat again, and what you can and can't eat, change of taste, etc
Other
Side Effects
loss of salivary glands, peripheral neuropathy, fatigue, mouth dryness, mouth sores, swallowing problems, thyroid changes, taste changes, chemo brain