My father is undergoing chemo and radiation treatment for small cell lung cancer (five weeks down with two and a half to go). He has bad throat pain to the point he can't stand to swallow (I think there is swelling as well as pain). He is extremely weak and is loosing a few pounds everyday. He can barely even drink anything and when he does I can see the discomfort on his face. He drops his head and tries to shake it off. He gets treatments through the Veterans Hospital and they don't seem concerned (they never are). He is now so weak he can't walk without help. Any advice on how to ease his discomfort would be greatly appreciated. He is a diabetic and already has to give himself shots daily. He also has alzheimers, heart problems and several other health issues.
Cancer - 4 Answers
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1 :
Cloraseptic or sucking on suckrets (the cough drops for sore throats) could help as will Tylenol. There is also an oral gel that helps with mouth sores (sorry I can't remember what it's called) Your dad could also possibly have Thursh, which cause whitish looking junk in his throat. It is a yeast type infection that is common in Chemo patients. He should get it checked by his oncologist. Chemo plays havoc with all parts of the body, in particular any part that is protected by mucous membranes. If he can eat just a little bit, soft foods with gravy, smoothies, anything high in calories (cream soups, etc) baked potatoes mashed up with lots of butter and sour cream... are what got me through chemo. I wish your dad luck
2 :
His doctor needs to prescribe some oral swish and swallow, sometimes called a slurry. It has lidocaine in it. sometimes pharmacies have their own concoctions they whip up to help their pts with this terrible throat pain, They usually consist of an antibiotic, an anti-inflammatory an anti fungal and suspension to keep it all floating together. Remember the lidocaine must be given 1st before the slurry to help relieve the pain and be able to get the slurry down. Most important at this time is pain relief. Your dad can be given SubQ morphine which is injected like an insulin shot. This is totally acceptable in the cancer world because pts who have this much throat pain are not able to swallow oral medications easily. It doesn't take much for a family member to learn how to administer the sub q morphine and it will be useful down the road when your dad has to start taking injections such as neupogen or procrit to stimulate red and white blood cell formation. If he has a morphine allergy, he can be given dilaudid. FYI. while your dad is not able to swallow, he is losing valuable nutrients. Make sure a dietician sees him about his oral intake, He may need supplemental nutrition thru total parenteral nutrition or g tube feedings to get over the hump. I am a cancer nurse.
3 :
Have him ask his Oncologist about viscous lidocaine. It's a numbing medicine, but it's REALLY thick so it will coat his throat. And if he can stand it, gargle with lukewarm salt water. Sorry to hear he's sick, hope he gets to feeling better and has a speedy recovery!
4 :
Read up on glyconutrients. Start with this link glycoresource.com Also read my page.
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