Next step taking shape

[rvillella]

Saw the Radiation Oncologist yesterday. He is a real breath of fresh air. So many doctors today don't tell you like it is, just tell you what they think you should know and leave it at that. Dr. Anders tells you everything about the procedure and the possible side effects and then answers your questions straight on. I am starting a 6 week regimen of radiation and a chemo of carbo/taxol. The radiation starts next week, about a month after the surgery and the chemo we're not sure of. I see that doctor (VA versus Teaching Hospital) on the 26th of this month. Just wondering what I may face in the near future. I am really wondering about the not being able to swallow part. Is it really that bad, or is it manageable? Thanks for the prayers and the help so far.

Ralph

[kamataca]

isn't it great to have a Dr you can trust to tell you the truth? I love that about Mom's b-day.

Unfortunately, I can't advise you on any of your questions. Mom couldn't do chemo and could only do radiation on her skull. I know folks here can help you out.

Take care and keep us posted!

, Kelly

[Maryanne]

Sounds like you have a good regimen going there. I am glad you have confidence in your doctor.

Joel had the carbo/taxol and he handled it great. The only side effect he had beside the hair loss, was numbing in his legs and feet, which comes from the taxol. I massaged his legs and feet at night before bed. That helped him alot. He also took pain medicine which help him also. This came on about the 3rd day from treatment and lasted from 3 to 5 days.

I will say he does miss his massages

Good luck to you

Maryanne

[bunny]

I'm glad to hear you have a doc you connect with, and a plan. I have no answers for you re: radiation, but it's great to hear from you.

xoxo

amie

[mamasbabygirl]

Ralph,

I will be honest with you that the throat pain for my mom was one of the worst things she had to endure. She had it with the radiation. Others here have gotten relief from maalox/benadryl mix and something your Dr. will precribe called "magic mouthwash", but it did not help my mom at all. It just took time. My mom had the maimum amount of radiation for that area though bc she was not able to have surgery, so maybe that is why and maybe you will not have to endure such throat pain. Good luck, stay informed and strong!

[sues]

I had 38 rounds of radiation - that included the esphagus - it is not a fun part of the therapy. I used the "magic mouthwash" also - it did help me somewhat. My oncologist changed position of the radiation about half way through - in hopes of lessening the pain. After the radiation was over I had unbelievable pain - the rad onc kept telling me that it was a yeast infection. My med onc decided to have it checked out. I have an ulcer about where the radiation was hitting me. Now I'm on a medication to help that. The GI DR also stretched the esph.and said it would have to be done again !! I had 7 rounds of Carbo/ Taxol. With pretty severe side effects.. Dr said I'm "unique". I am extremely sensitive to meds of any kind.. The good part is the last CT scan showed the tumor had shrunk and the lymph nodes were clear. Now we start Tarceva. We'll see how I tollerate that. The good news here is that there are so many different options for us. What works for me may not work for someone else, and vice versa. Good luck to you / stay strong. Praying for you.

sue

[Darci]

I am glad to hear that you are so comfortable with your onc...I think that that will really help you!

My FIL will also be starting a treatment of rad/chemo here pretty soon.

I am hoping that you do well throughout the treatment, and that you see positive results quickly!

[MilliBr1]

My Moms story is the same as Lori's. Her esophagus was very sore and she had a very hard time eating anything. But everyone is different and some don't seems to have such a sever reaction. You are in my prayers.

[lindseysmom]

Hi Ralph,

Glad you have a great doc. I had the same treatment.

My throat did become sore. Very hard to swallow. I knew I had to keep eating to keep my strenght up, so I did. It will help if you cut the food into smaller pieces. You may need to chew a little longer. You may even need to change your diet. May need to try softer foods. You may even need to eat them at room temp. But the most important thing is to continue to eat. I did get a really bad case of indigestion, never had a problem with it before. You will probally become fatigued. Try to get some rest.

As far as the chemo treatments. I really had a easy time with that also. Fatigued, hair loss, put me into menopause. But you don't have to worry about that. Low blood counts a couple of times but no real problems.

Everyone is different. Please keep your doctor informed on any side affects. As Barney Fife would say NIP IT BUD.

Best Wishes,

Dee

[Wendy]

Hi Ralph,

I wanted to share with you that I did have 28 treatments daily of radiation and never had any pain in my throat!! I was told that many people do, as you have heard above, but there are others that don't. At the max I had a day or two of a little sore throat. I did have the "magic mouthwash" in the fridgerator ready for a problem, but I never did.

In any case, my advise is take each day as it comes. You may have harder side effects or you may not.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Wendy

[Ladyintheglen]

Hello Ralph!

I'm glad to hear that you have a Dr. that you trust and that he gives you the information the way that you want to hear it. FYI: You may be able to utilize him to speak with other Dr.'s that are not handling things the way that you want.

On the radiation issue and what may be on the way in the order of side effects: My husband had 35 treatments. He did develop a sore esophagus. We used BMX (benadryl,maalox,xylocaine) and Carafate to help him through it. Some days he wanted softer food but most days he ate what he wanted (or maybe a little less). We also had pain meds.

I think my best advice is that if you begin to feel any symptoms let the rad. onc. know immediately. Ask him to give you the prescription for what may be needed ahead of time. (It helped us to know that we were prepared.) Call your pharmacy to make sure that they have the medication on hand and let them know that you are going through radiation to the chest. (BMX isn't a common order.) Our pharmacy made sure they had plenty on hand. If the medication isn't working well let the Dr. know and don't accept the statement "Well, you have to expect to have pain with this." Your response should be "Well, with all the medications aimed at relieving pain I expect you to order something to help me." Granted you may have to go through some trial and error but you should have some relief.

I pray that you breeze through your treatments with minimal discomfort.

Cheryl