Tonsil removed with biopsies and neck disection

Hi Amanda. You will need decent pain relief so be sure to talk to your team to ask for something else. 
I hope you don’t mind me asking but we’re you taking Laxido or movicol to avoid the constipation that opiates cause? 
Tonsil pain should be ok by two weeks but starts getting better after a week. 
No question is daft and somebody here will have an answer so please pop back as and when you need some help 

Hi Amanda,

Sorry to hear about pain problems. 

I had tablets too after tonsillectomy, but before I started RT my CNS wrote to doctors to request all my medication was liquid or soluble, much easier to swallow and I could put through PEG. Still on liquids at moment, in fact I have my arthritis medicine made to order! 

As Dani has mentioned only real problem was constipation on codeine or morphine. At the end of RT I was using Fentanyl patches and paracetamol, might work? I'm sure your team will be able to find something that works. I also gargled soluble aspirin and spat it out, so my mouth got the benefit without affecting stomach. 

Take care, Ronnie 

Hi Amanda csn only echo what  Dani has said speak with your team. If you were having   stomach pains were you taking movicol l or laxido they are the best ones to take ordinary laxative s don’t work against opiates. Once you start radiotherapy it’s highly likely you will need strong pain relief so please speak with your team it’s no use leaving  it too late. You can get soluble co codomol on prescription.they may sting but easier than swallowing pills.
Hazel  

Hi Amanda. I was sent home after my tonsillectomy and neck dissection with four big ½ litre bottles of liquid paracetamol and ibuprofen in suspension (like Calpol) and it was a godsend. I just used to load up a syringe and squirted them down my throat alternately every three or four hours and it was brilliant. It might be worth asking your neck nurse for some. 

Hi. I also had a neck dissection but, the greatest pain came from the tonsil surgery. It suddenly hit me about day 5, but it does go about a weekish later, so you should be ok for RT. I never had morphine, so I can't help there. From memory, I think they waited for 2/3 weeks (I am almost 2 yrs post treatment) after the neck dissection to take my staples out before RT could even begin. I took Solphadeine at home as it was dissolavble and easier to swallow but did remember to take Movicol too. Good luck.

Thankyou everyone I've managed to get liquid paracetamol and ibuprofen from the Dr, I've not started radiotherapy yet I presume they will let my neck heal a bit first and hopefully my throat will be more comfortable but I will be getting the laxatives just in case, the pain I've been getting from the painkillers is upper gastric pain it excruciating so paracetamol and ibuprofen is all I can tolerate and I just hope that's enough for radiotherapy,  this is what's worrying me most not being able to tolerate the pain I've been at crying point with the tonsils removal , I seem to have a intolerance to the higher end pain killers. 

Hi Amanda

I really feel for you, what an awful thing.

As others have said, there will be different options. I took Codeine when recovering from my tonsillectomy but it made me feel very sick. I told my oncologist this and so he avoided giving me Codeine when I started RT. I had liquid morphine, liquid paracetamol and morphine patches when at my worst but I had anti sickness meds (had to try a couple of different options). So yes keep your medical team updated and they can tweak meds as needs be.

Very best of luck with your treatment, you are on your way to getting better now.

Michelle x

Hi Amanda

Well done for getting liquid paracetamol and ibuprofen.

As has been suggested, definitely speak to your team about the discomfort youre experiencing with the other painkillers.  There will be other options available and you may need something stronger when you start rt.

Linda x

Glad you managed to get the meds Amanda. Just as an addendum, at the end of week 2 after the RT had finished the pain, which had been quite manageable until then, increased so my GP put me on MST - slow release morphine tablets - which really helped. So by this time I was still using paracetamol and ibuprofen every 3 or 4 hours on top of the MST and with Oramorph on standby for any breakthrough pain (which I very rarely used). All this really helped me through this period BUT the morphine caused bad constipation so I was on regular sachets of Laxido as well to try to keep that in check. I took Oxyacetylene  liquid to numb my throat before I ate (brilliant stuff) and at other times gargled with Difflam if needed. All of this made the worst two or three weeks manageable even though it was hard work. (I found I needed to print off a chart of what to take when each day as it could be quite confusing!) It’s all about trying to stay ahead of any pain rather than trying to catch up with it, as I’m sure you’re aware.

Wishing you all the best. M