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after 6 weeks of Radiotherapy to tonsil,base of tongue and neck.

thinboy
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I finished my treatment last Friday.I have such a sore throat that I have trouble swallowing Also,I feel like I'm drowning in disgusting,brown

dark grey muccose  I try and force the special drinks down,but as soon as I start,the ulcers in my throat say,"oh no you don't" and the mucose starts flowing,causing me to keep spitting and gagging.Also,a very irritating,dry cough starts as soon as I start drinking.

As I understand it,the two weeks after treatment will make all the side effects worse,but then things will improve.Should I just get on with this

and stop moaning?

From Thinboy.

  • Hello thinboy,

    Thanks for getting in touch, and welcome to our online community.

    My name is Carole and I’m one of the Cancer Information Nurse Specialists on the Macmillan Support Line.

    It sounds as if you’re having a really hard time just now and we are concerned.

    You should get in touch with your hospital specialist team, radiotherapy department or cancer treatment helpline immediately, so that you can be assessed.

    They need to know, that drinking makes you cough and that you have brown, dark grey mucous.

    Difficulty swallowing, or dysphagia can be a side effect of radiotherapy, but coughing when drinking, can mean that liquid is ‘going down the wrong way’ into the lungs. This can lead to a chest infection. Any mucous which isn’t clear could be caused by infection.

    It’s also important to let them know and that you have ulcers and that you’re unable to take the special drinks you have been prescribed.

    We can’t stress enough how important it is to contact your hospital team. They would never think you were moaning. On the contrary, they would expect you to get in touch with them. They are best placed to help.

    Once you have been in touch with your hospital team, you are welcome to get back in touch with us here, on the phone or via our online chat service. Our online head and neck cancer forum can be a good source of support too, and is a place to share experiences.

    I hope this is helpful,

    Sending best wishes,

    Carole

    Our ref: LB

     

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