More Resources

I checked out the Head & Neck msg board on PlanetCancer.org, and it was more helpful. They're closer to my age, but mostly younger! Now I know that the ringing in my ears that just began two weeks ago is common after radiation therapy. I was afraid the cancer had spread to my ears!

I found a woman in Boston who went through what I did, plus a procedure called brachytherapy. They "implant mini-glass jars in the underside of the jaw and slide radiation seeds into them over the course of a few days, directly into the tongue." I remember the radiation specialists mentioning this procedure before I did the external radiation method. I remember that it freaked me out. It still does. The upside is I wouldn't lose any hair, but I would have to be hospitalized for a few days.

Another guy who went through 8 weeks of radiation and Cisplatin chemotherapy lost some feeling in the tips of his fingers temporarily. That happens to me on and off, too. Along with a tingling around my surgery arm, and neck twinges from surgery.

So I am feeling better now that I'm discovering better online resources. One of the best postings was to a McSweeney's list:

"Signs Your Doctor May Be Coming On To You" by Wendy Molyneux