Hi all,
Was diagnosed with a stage 3 carcinoma tumor on my voice box in Aug and have undergone 35 rounds of radiation and 3 rounds of chemo, which is my complete course of treatments (unless they say otherwise in 3mos)
I am now 3.5wks post last radiation 4weeks post last chemo and have had a fairly decent recovery.
However it feels as though one side of my throat is healing but the other is still very sore. Especially overnight the waking up gagging etc from the feeling of my throat healing shut is horrible.
I sleep primarily on my left side, so the right side of my throat is facing upwards and I guess not getting moisturizes by saliva all night. I have tried sleeping on the right side but then the sensation just switches sides.
It feels as if my throat is healing shut. Not the airway/breathing but the swallowing side. Gagging and choking myself awake and even throughout the day.I sleep with a large bottle of water next to my bed and typically drink all of it overnight.
The pain, otherwise, is manageable. Even eating is not as bad as it was.
I had been prescribed 4x daily 5ml hydromorphone as needed, but have reduced to 2x overnight and Ibuprofen/acetaminophen throughout the day.
Any suggestions to help with the gagging?
Hi.
Have you tried xylimelts at night. For the first few months after I had RT I used two each night and they kept my mouth moist. Another thing you could try is a Difflam spray right at the back of your throat. It’s more targeted than a gargle with the same stuff.
Putting a humidifier on your bedside table keeps the air moist and might help.
Can I ask if you snore?
If you do you can tape your mouth at night but I suspect that might be a little early in your recovery to be thinking about that.
I hope somebody can come up with something for you
Dani
Base of tongue cancer. T2N0M0 6 weeks Radiotherapy finished January 2019
How are you doing, now?
I’m pretty good now and coming up to my five years.
The only time I get problems is at night because I mouth breathe when I’m asleep.
I tape my mouth now at night and the difference is remarkable
Dani
Base of tongue cancer. T2N0M0 6 weeks Radiotherapy finished January 2019
I am now 3.5wks post last radiation 4weeks post last chemo and have had a fairly decent recovery.
PS. Remember this is hugely early in recovery. The nerves in your throat still have a lot of healing to do.
Dani
Base of tongue cancer. T2N0M0 6 weeks Radiotherapy finished January 2019
You can buy sleep tape. A lot of them cover both lips so I cut one of those into three and just run a tape from under my nose to under my bottom lip. It works really well
Longevity Sleep Tape - Mouth Tape for Sleeping, Snoring Aid, Improved Nasal Breathing, Strong But Gentle Adhesion (30 Strips) https://amzn.eu/d/6O4hm9G
Dani
Base of tongue cancer. T2N0M0 6 weeks Radiotherapy finished January 2019
