Talk 0r eat

Hi Loch

I am so sorry to hear of your dilemma. That is a hard choice to make. I have not had a laryngectomy but I know there are a few people on this forum who have had to make the same decision and from what they have said are getting on O.K. after their laryngectomy. I do hope that they hop online soon to give you some advice.

Sometimes you make a choice and then work with it as there is no right or wrong answer. You can only weigh up the pros and cons and then go with that.

When I was regretting a decision I made around one of my cancer surgeries my wise daughter said to me 'woulda,coulda, shoulda'. In other words it is what it is and regretting it is not going to change anything, just work with it and she was exactly right. I stopped regretting and got on with things and it made a huge difference in my attitude.

Good luck to you no matter what you decide.

Lyn

Hi Loch

Sorry to hear your choices,

I just wanted to say about the NG. I started with an NG and had it for 4 months, they are used temprarily, if you have to have a feeding tube permanantly they change it to a RIG, sometimes called a PEG. Both do the same thing and are are fitted straight into the stomach.

You don't have to be hooked up to it during the day, I feed at night time so it leaves my days 'free' of it, so don't worry about being lumbered with it. You have to sleep propped up, but you soon get used to it.

If yours is going to be permant, ask if they will fit a RIG/PEG instead.

Cat x

Sorry loch you have such a difficult decision to make. I’ll tag our other community champs who are all laryngectomees. chris2012   Kasvin      MikeO in particular had to have a salvage laryngectomy after his hypopharyngeal cancer returned. 
My first husband had laryngeal cancer and his radiotherapy failed. He coped extremely well after the operation and became the loudest “voice” in the pub as he always had been. 
best wishes 

Good evening Loch, i know what you mean as i had 3 major surgeries in three years starting from 2008 until 2010 with my last being a total laryngectomy. I never got the choice as my swallowing never really recovered after my first two surgeries and have been PEG fed ever since. I have now gotten used to using the PEG and not speaking although i can still drink liquids which is a big bonus. Whatever choice you make you will learn to adapt to your new way of life. I think in this day and age with computers and phones keeping in contact is a lot easier plus you might be able to have a voice valve fitted or use an Electro-larynx but this will be discussed by your speech therapist once the Laryngectomy has been done. Of course, i do miss eating as the choice of food supplements is limited mainly to sweet-flavored liquids which get a bit sickly after a while. There are no right or wrong choices its what you feel is the best for you at this moment in time but rest assured you will be able to lead a good quality of life. Wishing you all the best for your laryngectomy and recovery. Take care.

                                                                                   Chris 

Thank you Dani. 

                                            Chrisxx

chris2012 said:

Thank you Dani. 

Bless you Chris. Thank you for coming on to help. It’s a momentous decision  

Hi Loch, I read your post,I'm in a very similar position. I'm going to have to have a full Laryngectomy to prevent Aspiration Pneumonia which will eventually kill me,its tried 14 times now in 2 years. I feed via a peg, for me I find using the big syringe to push the food in 4 times a day far better than being hooked up all night to a machine. 

I have a choice to prolong my life so the trade off is I'll lose my voicebox, but the Pneumonia will definitely kill me sooner rather than later so I've made the choice. I've been ill for 4 years now after Tonsil then tongue Cancer and lots of treatment and finally neck surgery. There is a 30% chance the neck wound won't heal due to scarring from the Radiotherapy and prior surgery. But that's a 70% chance it will, so I'm praying hard.i intend to enjoy my summer first roaring around on my Motorcycle that I've been too ill to ride for 4 years! I hope all goes well for you.keep in touch, Wayne.

Thanks Chris, your reply is very helpful to me also, I'm facing the tough choice to lose my voicebox also and will probably not swallow well after either due to previous Radiotherapy damage. Fuck Cancer! 

I feed via peg and also find both the process and the food tiresome but hey, I'm alive! Thanks bud for your comments, keep in touch,  Wayne.

Good evening Lonewolf81,Its always hard to choose but its always good to have options, it took me a couple of years to get used to using the PEG and realising i would not eat solid foods anymore unless technology finds a way as they are always looking for ways to improve our lives after cancer. 70% is very good so fingers crossed it all goes well, i admire your attitude about getting out on your bike again as positive thinking really does help. Wishing you all the best, take care.

                                                              Chris 

Lonewolf81 said:

There is a 30% chance the neck wound won't heal due to scarring from the Radiotherapy

Hi Wayne. Oh fingers crossed. My first husband had a laryngectomy after his RT failed  in 1987 and they used to give a heck of a dose in those days. He was fine and healed ok