Treatment was completed January 2017.
The port and peg tube were removed about one and a half months after my treatment ended. They were both removed in the doctors office so required no hospital visit. I was glad to get them gone. It took about 4 months to get fully off protein drinks and smoothies.
About 2 months after treatment I developed a mild case of tinnitus in my left ear. This may have been caused from the Cisplatin which was the drug used in my chemo. I have found that applying warm heat pad to ear can some times help reduce the sound. I also take Lipo Flavonoid which is claimed to help with this. It is very mild and I do not hear it most of the time. I have learned to ignore it.There are many videos that have various sound pitches that claim to help. I found one to work well that you can find HERE. It does not silence the tinnitus, but it does reduce it a lot for me. Again, you have to find one that works best for you.
I have blood work done every 6 months and also see my medical team every 6 months. Prior to my oncologist visits, he orders a CT scan of neck and chest with contrast. Everything is fine and no issues. I will be monitored for 5 years which will take me to 2022.
I am back to full fitness workouts with the weights and running. Felt great to be back out on the trails. I have hiked numerous 20+ mile hikes and 50+ mile bike rides. I am also training to run my first 50K run.
The scar on my neck is healing great. I have some extra skin on neck and that is also reducing. It is important to work the muscles in the neck so they do not become tight due to the surgery.
I perform a few different tasks on my neck that I believe has helped reduce my neck size. First, I perform exercises that my PT gave me. You may view them here. Due to nerves being cut from surgery, it has some negative affects. I would get a tingling on my skin like little bugs running around. Scratching did very little so I thought about trying a hair brush.
I lightly brush downward on my neck toward my chest with a soft bristle hair brush. After about a month the tingling feeling went away and it also helped bring back sensation into my skin. My doctor also said that is similar to a massage which helps keep fluid from building up. I do it for about 5 minutes, twice a day. I have seen a big improvement in my neck. I also use lotion on my neck daily to help keep the skin moist. I use downward massages on my neck when applying the lotion also.To this day I still use the hair brush massages and I believe it has helped reduce the neck a lot.
The saliva in my mouth has returned to about 80%. The only time I really deal with dry mouth now is when I work out or some form of exercise. I make sure to have plenty of water when working out. At night I use Biotene to keep my mouth moist though not sure it is needed. My mouth creates saliva but it does not replenish it fast when needed such as when eating dry foods or exercise. Those times I need to keep water with me.
I did deal with decaying of teeth and had several removed from earlier stages of dry mouth. That is the only serious issue I encountered from dry mouth. I had to get partials made and use Poligrip. I notice that Poligrip aids in dry mouth as it seems to soak up some of my saliva. I do not use it at night.
I am back to eating most foods and my taste buds are about 90% normal. All moist foods are no problem at all such as pasta, oatmeal, stew, soups, chili and so forth. I am also able to eat some dry foods with no problem such as sandwiches, pizza, burritos and so forth. I still make smoothies at times just for something quick but I do not need them. I eat about 90% of the foods I use to eat. I also eat spicy foods, hot sauce and love jalapenos as I did before cancer.
I only have three concerns today which are getting my saliva back to 100% (around 80% now), getting to eat ALL foods and the tinnitus. In addition I am also working to tone my body back as I did lose a lot of weight.
I am now cancer free as my last ct scan showed no cancer cells.
My red and white blood count have been low since treatment as my doctors said it may take them time to go back up or they may never return to normal. But my last blood test showed the white blood count is now back to normal and the red is almost back to normal. So those are looking great.
My ENT said on my last visit that the inflammation in my throat is gone. That is great. We tend to get mucus a lot in throat after radiation. That is 100% gone now. It has been months since I had a mucus build up. My normal voice has returned and throat is not sore any more. But I notice something crazy. Certain foods make me cough when I eat them such as ice cream. It is not a heavy cough but just a cough. After I am done, the coughing stops. So other than that, my throat is doing fine.
Though not a big deal, my ears have yet to start creating ear wax. So yes, they are still dry but does not really bother me. If they feel dry I just use lotion in them. I also remember when I would have to smash a pill to take orally but today I can not only swallow a pill, I swallow 3 at the same time. Big improvement! Last, the hair on my neck has yet to start growing and may never return.
I will post anything new so keep checking back!
