Chronic Laryngitis?
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An update -
Excision Biopsy done, and whilst I wasn’t enjoying the day it’s over and the experience was as good as it could be in the circumstances. All the staff I came into contact with (and there were a lot) were kind and professional.
A mildly amusing take-away from the day; the only difference I could discern between how private and NHS patients were treated was that when you’re being moved from one bit to another of the hospital, someone carried my bag and bits and bobs. NHS patients carried their own. 😂 Comforting from a clinical standpoint I think.
I have a sore throat from hell, as you might imagine and I’m a little shaky (system shock or still lingering effect from the General Anaesthetic, not sure).
Neck and jaw are stiff and uncomfortable from the position and pressure during the procedure, I have the weirdest bruise on the side of my tongue…didn’t even know that was possible! 🤷♀️
Those will all pass given a few days.
What won’t pass is that after the surgery the surgeon advised me that he wasn’t optimistic about what the biopsy would reveal. He’s saying it’s only grade l, or I think that’s what he said…
I’ll need a CAT scan of my chest and an MRI of my neck and further surgery using a laser - again not sure what that’s for (this was all just after I’d woken up in recovery so details are a little fuzzy)
Oh and Radiotherapy (but probably not Chemo - which is the bit I was most dreading if that’s how things turned out).
I will see him a week on Tuesday (darned Coronation bank holidays!) for the official results
and the ongoing plan with the ‘Multifunctional Team’ who take over from here.
So that’s where it is. I am, by turns, terrified, philosophical and trying to be optimistic (the surgeon did say he was confident of a ‘cure’ in the end, so I’m hanging onto that) but can’t help worrying about what the scans may reveal.
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Just want to wish you all the best going forward. Try to stay positive and vent here if you need.
The ‘Multifunctional Teams’ my sister (lives in Kent) had for her breast cancer (2021) and colon cancer (2022) were excellent.
Cheers, h.2 -
Wishing you the best. Hang tough.1
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I'm glad the procedure went fairly smoothly, but of course concerned for you that the news may not be as good as you'd first hoped.
I know that different cancer types require different treatments, and have different side effects . . . but would observe that my experience with breast cancer treatment was that scary popular-press reports I'd read about treatment beforehand were more doom-y and awful than my actual experience. That was true even though I was sicker than average during chemo (based on comparison with others' stories I heard during long participation in a cancer support group). It wasn't fun, to say the least - surgery, chemo, radiation, 7.5 year drug regimen thereafter. But it was manageable.
One thing is that oncologists these days are quite good at managing side effects of both chemo and radiation. If you do require treatment, I'd encourage you to be very open with your treatment team about anything unpleasant that may occur, rather than trying to tough it out on your own. They may be able to help mitigate some of that.
I'm hoping you'll get as good news as is possible, as the situation proceeds, and that outcomes will be excellent. It sounds like there are reasons to be hopeful.
((hugs!))0 -
I'm glad the procedure went fairly smoothly, but of course concerned for you that the news may not be as good as you'd first hoped.
I know that different cancer types require different treatments, and have different side effects . . . but would observe that my experience with breast cancer treatment was that scary popular-press reports I'd read about treatment beforehand were more doom-y and awful than my actual experience. That was true even though I was sicker than average during chemo (based on comparison with others' stories I heard during long participation in a cancer support group). It wasn't fun, to say the least - surgery, chemo, radiation, 7.5 year drug regimen thereafter. But it was manageable.
One thing is that oncologists these days are quite good at managing side effects of both chemo and radiation. If you do require treatment, I'd encourage you to be very open with your treatment team about anything unpleasant that may occur, rather than trying to tough it out on your own. They may be able to help mitigate some of that.
I'm hoping you'll get as good news as is possible, as the situation proceeds, and that outcomes will be excellent. It sounds like there are reasons to be hopeful.
((hugs!))
Speaking of less awful and breasts, I finally had my first mammogram last week and it wasn't nearly as painful as I'd been led to expect. Wasn't actually painful at all.
Why I was so overdue was not at all related to anticipatory pain, but location. I'm a veteran and the only location available was deep inside Boston at a facility where I've had many unpleasant experiences. There was supposed to be a new radiology location much closer to me. It was finally built, and the space for the machine is there, but the machine still hasn't been purchased. I eventually gave up on that location and asked for a community care referral. My doctor was able to persuade CC that if I didn't get a referral, I wasn't going to get the procedure, and it was finally approved.
This is the second community care referral that was denied a few times before approval. I'm writing this to encourage other veterans who want care in the community rather than at a VA location to not give up and keep persisting until you get what you need.1 -
Latest update, with some unexpectedly good news.
I went to see the surgeon yesterday evening to get the official histology results of the excision biopsy I had 10 days ago.
Much to his surprise the results were better than expected. The tissue he removed showed ‘moderate dysplasia’ which had not invaded any of the surrounding tissue.
In simple terms, it means I don’t have cancer *yet* as no cancer cells were detected. It does leave me with a significantly elevated risk of a cancer developing in the future. I will be closely monitored from here on out, so if anything does develop it’ll be caught very early.
Not a clean bill of health, but a far better starting point than it might have been. 😊
Thank you all for your kind words and thoughts.
I’m much relieved and determined to do whatever is needed to reduce the risks going forward.11 -
What a great outcome! I'm so glad for you. I am sure that I am not the only one following your thread, who did not previously reply and has been rooting for you!3
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So happy for you and thank you so much for updating us. Did you get any advice, apart from monitoring, for self care moving forward?
(No need to give details)
Oddly enough I came on the boards today to see if you had an update yet.
Good health to you going forward.
Cheers, h.2 -
I'm just catching up to this post and I'm so sorry it wasn't as innocuous as I'd imagined! I'm so glad to hear that the final outcome was so positive, though! Did the surgeon say you'd be able to get your voice back?1
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Almost two weeks after the excision biopsy and my voice, whilst far from normal is much improved. I have some tone back, albeit with a little hoarseness still, volume is still reduced but I think it may be a couple of months before it reaches ‘recovery’ - whatever that means.
No advice as yet, moving forward, but I’m composing a list of questions for the next ENT consultant, who is more of a specialist in this exact field.
The one thing the original consultant did say was that I shouldn’t drink neat spirits. Not that I ever have…never been a fan of spirits - I’m a red wine woman, which he said was completely fine. I still intend to keep any alcohol to a bare minimum.
I’ll keep this updated as and when I have relevant information.
Again, thank you all so much for indulging me. It has helped more than you know to be able to express the facts and feelings as this has unfolded for me. 💜
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Resurrecting this thread because I have more to share as a means to settle it in my head.
I saw the new, more specialised, consultant surgeon today, which I thought was going to be more of an ‘information and plan going forward’ consultation, but when he used the endoscope to check my larynx he found that the growth had returned.
So my second Excision Biopsy (Microlaryngoscopy) is scheduled for 23 June, less than two months after the previous one. Unfortunately, my husband is in America on business that week so I’m going to have to rely on one of my daughters to drop me off and pick me up and stay with me for the requisite 24 hours after the General Anaesthetic etc.
Not feeling great as I was quite shocked to discover the problem had returned so fast. In my mind that doesn’t bode well for the future.7 -
Thank you for coming back and updating us. I was only trying to find this thread yesterday to see if you had updated.
I’m so sorry the growth has returned and further surgery is needed. I hope the biopsy on the regrowth is negative.
I’m am glad your team is on the ball and acting fast.
Gosh it’s hard to type encouraging words, you’ll just have to take a virtual hug from me.
Hugs, h.3 -
Ugh, sorry to hear that
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So, a bit of deja vu for me and anyone following this thread.
Second Excision Biopsy Microlaryngoscopy yesterday. This one was done by the more specialised ENT surgeon and at a different hospital - purpose built, only 6 years old, state of the art private hospital.
End result, my throat is significantly more painful this time, as I think this surgeon was determined to be a little more aggressive in how much tissue he removed in order to be sure he’d left none of the rogue cells in situ.
His immediate post op thoughts were that he’d seen nothing particularly sinister in the excised tissue but obviously Histology will tell the full story. Results on 7th July.
It was suggested by the theatre staff that I could pursue a refund of the fee charged by the first surgeon, since it merely resulted in a do over, causing further pain and distress. Not sure how I feel about that. I don’t think I’m inclined to follow that up since I’m sure he didn’t leave tissue in place deliberately and did, indeed, choose to refer me to a more specialised surgeon.
Anyway. Day 1 of recovery again. Strictly no use of my voice for 48 hours….something that is much harder than you’d think! I’ve been using Google translate which will do a text to speech function, but it’s a bit iffy - it’ll work for a while then suddenly stop. 🤷♀️ Charades can only get you so far!
Amusingly, seems my dog is psychic! My daughter reports that he was behaving oddly yesterday. Very subdued, lying by the door crying under his breath then suddenly leapt up and ran to her in excitement, jumping up and giving her kisses! A second later my text came through on her phone that the procedure was safely over.
Same thing again a couple of hours later - this time the text was the one saying they were allowing me home and could she come and pick me up! Dogs are weird! 💜
Gratuitous picture of my dog incoming!
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Definitely deserving of a hug!0
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Round two of Deja Vu..,
Had a third operation yesterday as the growth had once again come back. 😢
Much more aggressive this time, much more painful. Pretty spacy from the painkillers because I’m really not able to eat yet.
Not having a good time at the moment! 🙄7 -
Oh gosh, I am so sorry to hear that you have had to have yet another surgery. I have hoped that it was a no news was good news situation.
I do wish you the best and hope this is the last surgery.
hugs, h.0 -
I just came across this threat out of curiosity. I am sorry that you @BarbaraHelen2013 have been going thru such a hard time dealing with serious health issues for a long time.
As I was reading the entirely threat I kept hoping that one of your doctors had tested you for the presence of HPV (human papilloma virus), and what were the results of the pathology reports for surgeries #2 and now #3. I know that you are in the UK and that the medical system operates under different protocols, but if you haven't been tested for this virus, maybe you can ask for it. It is only a blood test. But if positive, the f/up treatment would be different.
I wish you lots of luck and also strength and resilience. Keep us informed when you can because it seems that this group in MFP had followed you for several months giving you lots of support and understanding.
E-hugs. G.
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