Three Month Update

Monday:

It's hard to believe but it has been three months since my last checkup with Dr. Weber and Dr.Beadle. I have been doing well. My tongue is almost completely healed and the only side effects that I continue to have are as follows. I have a dry mouth which usually manifests itself at night and causes me to drink water throughout the night. This of course, causes me to make trips to the bathroom, so, it's a vicious cycle. The other side effect include loss of taste. My taste buds are maybe 40% back but there is a lot I still can't taste. This is the good and the bad news. This means I am rarely hungry and food which once was a highpoint in my day, has been relegated to the back burner. My weight has leveled off at 170-173 and that is good. The other side effect is Lymphedema which is a swelling of the neck and is a side effect from the Radiation. There are exercises and massages that I can do to alleviate the problem and I will find out about them tomorrow. In the mean time I can't button my shirt collars which is only a problem if I have to wear a tie.More tomorrow.

Tuesday:

Today we met with my doctors. The short and sweet news is that the scans were all clear, there is no sign of any cancer and I will be seen again in three months for my six months check-up. That's the best news possible.

I also met with Lymphedema specialist and he gave me a series of massage exercises to do each day for the next two months. He feels this will greatly reduce the swelling and redirect my body to deal with the fluid build up in other ways.  The lymphatic system became damaged due to the Radiation and as a result fluid built up. Apparently this is fairly common. I'll let you know how I fare with the exercises. I feel like celebrating. Maybe I'll try my new "dry mouth" rinse.