Diet problems when you have laryngeal cancer
Treatment for laryngeal cancer can affect how you eat and drink. For example, you might have difficulty swallowing or loss of taste. This often improves after your treatment finishes. Support is available and there are things you can do to help you cope.
Who can help?
Dietitians can help you cope with eating problems and suggest ways of dealing with diet difficulties. There will be a dietitian in your hospital team. They can support you from diagnosis, through treatment and afterwards.
You will also see a speech and language therapist (SLT). They play an important role in helping you with swallowing problems and speech. They can teach exercises to support you with swallowing difficulties.
Your healthcare team sees you regularly during your treatment and at your follow up appointments. They can answer your questions and help with any problems you might have.
Difficulty swallowing
You may see your speech and language therapist and a dietician before you start treatment if this is likely to affect your swallowing.
Radiotherapy
Radiotherapy to your neck can make your throat very sore. Eating might be difficult or painful for a while. And it is likely that swallowing will be hard. Your doctor will give you strong painkillers to help with this. Your swallowing usually gets better within a month of finishing treatment. But for some people, it may take longer.
Surgery
Surgery involving the mouth and throat can make eating and swallowing difficult. This is due to swelling and sometimes pain after surgery. The area will recover when the swelling goes down.
Soft diet or liquid nutrition
Your dietitian will assess you before you start treatment. They will suggest whether you need a feeding tube put into your stomach.
The tube might be:
- from your nose to your stomach (nasogastric tube)
- directly into your stomach (gastrostomy or PEG tube)
You have liquid nutrition through the tube. This helps to reduce weight loss during treatment.
You may still be able to manage small amounts of soft or pureed food, and sips of fluid. As your sore throat starts to recover, you will be able to increase the amount you eat. Eventually your specialist nurse or doctor will take out the feeding tube.
Keeping your mouth and teeth clean
Even if you are not eating, it's important to keep your mouth and teeth clean. This helps to stop infection developing and makes you feel more comfortable.
Taste changes
After having a laryngectomy, your sense of smell can change or get worse. This can also reduce your sense of taste.
Also radiotherapy and some chemotherapy drugs can affect your taste buds. Some people say their food has a metallic, bitter or salty taste.
Radiotherapy to some parts of the head and neck can cause long term side effects. These can sometimes be permanent. Before you start your treatment, ask your doctor if it’s likely to affect your taste.
Loss of appetite and weight loss
Some people may have lost quite a bit of weight by the time they are diagnosed with laryngeal cancer. You might also have had pain swallowing for a time, which can put you off eating.
After your treatment, you need to build yourself up again. But this can be difficult if you don't have much appetite. If you have lost your appetite, it can be easier to cope with eating little and often than to have a big plate of food.
You can help to maintain your weight by adding calories to everyday foods.
You can:
-
have soft cereal for breakfast – add honey or sugar and cream or whole milk
-
make instant soups or gravies with milk instead of water
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mix mashed potato with butter, grated cheese, or cream
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make drinks like coffee or hot chocolate with all milk instead of water and preferably whole milk
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drink liquid food supplements or make ice lollies or ice creams out of smoothies
Dry mouth
Radiotherapy to your head and neck can cause a dry mouth. You might hear your doctor or nurse call this xerostomia (pronounced zero-stow-mee-a). It can make eating and talking very uncomfortable. This can last for several months, but some people find the dryness is permanent.
Your doctor can prescribe artificial saliva for your mouth or stimulants for your salivary glands. You might find it helps to carry a bottle of water with you all the time, so you can keep taking small sips to moisten your mouth.
A dry mouth can cause other problems, such as mouth infections or tooth decay. It is important to have regular check ups with your dentist.
Difficulty chewing and opening your mouth
Certain muscles in your face help to move your jaw. The muscles can become stiff during radiotherapy or surgery to the head and neck area.
It might be difficult to eat or chew if you are unable to open your mouth properly. Your doctor or dentist may suggest some gentle jaw exercises to help prevent this from becoming a permanent problem.
Your speech and language therapists can also help if you are concerned.
