Weight Loss Post Radiation

Hi Don

You ate doing blindingly well to be swallowing anything at all this far into treatment. You’re right 2K calories isn’t enough. The advice for most men here in U.K. is 3-3.5K during treatment. 
The internet has lots of recipes for high calories high protein shakes you could try 

Avocado / banana / peanut butter / full fat milk or ice cream can get you 2K in one glass. If you try this one add the peanut butter last in small amounts or it just sticks to the blender blades 

Hold on. Taste does come back but very slowly. 

Protein drinks can cause nausea for many patients, I detested taking them, small meals taken often worked for me, plenty of gravy/sauce with them, washed down with alcohol free ale for a few extra calories.

Hi Don

Do you have a PEG or RIG? I lost 16 kg during the course of my treatment. Eventually I had two concentrates a day delivered with a pump which I could tolerate at quite a rate and then took metoclopramide on finishing to help pass the stomach contents quickly to prevent me mechanically vomiting the contents of my stomach. I was prone to mechanical vomiting due to the secretions causing me to wretch. 3 weeks post completion of treatment (7 weeks of radiotherapy and two doses of chemotherapy for cancer of my right tonsil and 2 lymph nodes) I discovered I could taste again and as I could still swallow some solid foods I could take them in addition to the two concentrates, this soon enabled me to gain weight. Fortunately I was able to stop the concentrates and eat only solids from week 6 of recuperation, my weight is steady and a healthy BMI. It was worth experimenting to discover how my body could tolerate the rate of the pump and what pharmaceuticals helped keep the stomach contents down. Wishing you a speedy recovery.      

No peg or rig. It’s been tough to put any semi solid food down.im now starting with soups. I found today that I could taste some foods on the right side of my mouth.

Hi, my husband completed 6 weeks of RT and 2 x triple doses of chemo in January. He lost about 15kg during treatment, had a NG tube fitted and was tube fed for about 16 weeks in total.

He struggled to swallow anything for a long time but when he started to eat, we focused on very easy to swallow food: Greek yogurt, weetabix with full fat milk, banana, soups, mashed veg with dollops of butter etc.

We had to stop the food supplements prescribed by the Dieticians as he kept getting really bad thrush and when we checked the supplements we found they were full of sugar. Since stopping them his thrush has stopped. I’ve swapped these for unflavoured whey protein powder, which I mix with milk in his cereal and add to soups. He’s maintaining his weight well now and has even gained a little.

Good luck with your journey, hang in there it does get better.

That’s a real improvement to have some taste isn’t it? Really pleased for you. I found ripe melons really easy to eat at first. I was given advice to try small amounts of different foods to see what I could taste, it was also suggested to that some flavours are held in the brain and not the taste buds so some reeducation might be needed. Hope you continue to have gains in the days and weeks ahead. 

Hi Don, I had a similar diagnosis but have had surgery and neck dissection (20 nodes taken, only one affected), then 30 sessions of radiotherapy, which I finished a couple of days ago. Following this thread as I'm in the same boat as you when it comes to getting enough calories !  

Like you, I can swallow, and am well hydrated as I drink lots of water, but anything thicker than water makes me gag. Since the surgery, it feels as if someone's put a roll of material down my throat, which I guess is probably scar tissue. The radiation's irritated it so it now feels enormous and sore and I've hardly eaten anything for 2 weeks. The dietitian says she'll be happy if I can get 2 En-shakes down, so I promised I would because I just can't bear the thought of an ng tube, which I'm told is my only option. However, I'm struggling to even get one down at the moment and have lost 14lbs so far.  I wish they'd have fitted a rig before treatment, but I was told I probably wouldn't need one.

Right now, I can't imagine ever eating a meal again ! Anyway, sorry I haven't come up with a solution, but just wanted you to know you're not alone in this situation. 

All the best,

Linda

Lindylou25 said:

because I just can't bear the thought of an ng tube,

I know it’s a difficult thing to get your head round. I had one and I can say honestly that I couldn’t feel it at the back of my throat. The impact proper nutrition has on the speed and quality of healing is immeasurable. I would really beg you to reconsider. Hugs 

Hi Dani, I think the team were a bit reluctant to give me the ng tube as the drinks make me very nauseous to the point that sometimes I throw them back up and they said there was a risk I'd bring the tube up, too, or keep dislodging it.  I'm on strong anti nausea medication now, which seems to be working, but if I can't manage to get my calories up in the next few days, I think I'll have to ring the hospital. Going to try some ice cream/banana/peanut butter tonight, but I'm not very hopeful. Never in a million years did I ever think I'd become anorexic lol.

Have they suggested drip feeding via a pump?