swallowing exercises – Oral Cancer News

Swallowing exercises can improve quality of life for head and neck cancer patients

Source: www.targetedonc.com Author: Gina Columbus While patients with head and neck cancer are likely to experience difficulty swallowing after undergoing intesity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), Lynn Acton, MS, CCC (SLP) says the use of swallowing exercises can drastically improve muscle movement for these patients both during and after radiation therapy (RT). In a study conducted by researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Brigham Women’s Hospital, patients with head and neck cancer who underwent RT in a 2-year period were evaluated for swallowing difficulty with a video swallow to score stricture and aspiration. Of the 96 patients evaluated who received IMRT once daily, 32% had some aspiration after therapy, while 37% had evidence of stricture following RT. Studies are currently ongoing to explore the utility of swallowing modalities for these patients. For example, an interventional, randomized, multicenter phase III trial is comparing early-active swallowing therapy versus nonspecific swallowing management (NCT02892487). Researchers are conducting the study to determine that early-active swallowing therapy can improve the quality of life of patients undergoing RT for head and neck cancer. Additionally, a behavioral questionnaire is evaluating adherence to preventative swallowing exercises and the reasons why patients choose not to follow them (NCT03010150). Patients will complete the questionnaire at baseline and again at 6 months following RT that will discuss adherence to swallowing exercises. Acton, a lecturer in surgery (otolaryngology) and speech pathologist at Yale School of Medicine, discussed the significance of swallowing modalities for patients with head and neck cancer during and after RT in an [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2017-05-05T12:37:40-07:00May, 2017|Oral Cancer News|

A Disorder That’s Hard to Swallow

Source: www.usnews.comAuthor: Anna Medaris Miller Ed Steger’s last meal was a bowl of soup in Las Vegas. “I remember it all too clearly, as if it were yesterday,” he says. But it wasn’t yesterday – it was 2006. “Life is very different” now, says Steger, a 63-year-old former program manager in Houston. Steger was diagnosed with head and neck cancer in 2005. In addition to 36 rounds of radiation and eight regimens of chemotherapy, he underwent six surgeries, including one that replaced a portion of his pharynx and removed parts of his left jawbone, tongue, epiglottis and soft palate. “The part that makes it odd is that I’m alive after having four recurrences,” Steger says. The part that makes it distressing is that he can’t eat solid foods. “There are many case studies I’ve seen where patients have said [their] swallowing disorder is the worst part of their disease – and I believe this to be true,” says Steger, who’s president of the National Foundation of Swallowing Disorders. His daily diet consists of four 8-ounce cans of the nutritional drink Boost Plus, along with two to four bottled Starbucks Frappuccinos, which he buys at his local supermarket. “It’s a very boring diet that allows me to maintain my weight,” says Steger, who’s 5 feet 10 inches tall and 155 pounds. It’s unknown how many people have dysphagia, or difficulty swallowing, but the condition can be caused by any one of 30 diverse health events, Steger says. While his dysphagia is a result of surgery, other people [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2015-06-02T16:23:17-07:00June, 2015|Oral Cancer News|

Swallowing exercises preserve function in head and neck cancer patients receiving radiation

Source: http://www.newsfix.ca/ Author: staff A study at UCLA’s Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center has found that head and neck cancer patients receiving radiation as part of their treatment were less likely to need a feeding tube or suffer unwanted side effects such as worsening of diet or narrowing of the throat passage if they performed a set of prescribed swallowing exercises — called a “swallow preservation protocol” — during therapy. The study, conducted from 2007 to 2012, was led by Dr. Marilene Wang, a member of the Jonsson Cancer Center and professor-in-residence in the department of head and neck surgery at UCLA’s David Geffen School of Medicine. The study was published online by the journal Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, and will appear later in the journal’s print edition. Surgery and radiation have been the traditional treatments for head and neck cancer, but with the advent of improved and targeted chemotherapy, many types of this disease are treated with chemotherapy and radiation, (chemoradiation) in the hope of preserving the tissue and structure. But, even when tissue and structure are preserved, patients do not always retain their ability to swallow naturally and normally. Most patients who receive chemoradiation have significant side effects during treatment and for a long time after recovery. Difficulty swallowing (dysphagia) is one of the most common unwanted side effects of radiation and chemoradiation, and is one of the main predictors of diminished quality of life for the patient after treatment. Wang’s study was designed to evaluate the swallow preservation [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2013-11-19T14:59:39-07:00November, 2013|Oral Cancer News|

Eating, Swallowing Exercises May Aid Throat Cancer Patients

Source: US NewsPublished: September 19, 2013 Keeping up these activities during chemo or radiation linked to better diets after treatment, study finds THURSDAY, Sept. 19 (HealthDay News) -- Throat cancer patients appear to benefit from continuing to eat and doing swallowing exercises while undergoing radiation treatment or chemotherapy, researchers say. Radiation treatment can interfere with a person's ability to swallow, but performing swallowing exercises can help patients prevent weakness that can occur after periods of not swallowing. The new study included nearly 500 patients treated for throat cancer between 2002 and 2008. Of the 58 percent of patients who followed swallowing exercises, 74 percent were able to maintain eating at the end of their treatment, the investigators found. In addition, eating and doing swallowing exercises during the treatment period were linked to better long-term diets after treatment ended and less time relying on a feeding tube, according to the study, which was published online Sept. 19 in the journal JAMA Otolaryngology -- Head & Neck Surgery. Long-term swallowing outcomes were best in patients who continued eating throughout radiation treatment or chemotherapy and followed their swallowing-exercise regimen, said Katherine Hutcheson, of the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, and colleagues. Outcomes were worst in patients who did not eat or do swallowing exercises. Nearly 14,000 new cases of throat cancer will be diagnosed in the United States this year, the study authors said in a journal news release. * This news story was resourced by the Oral Cancer Foundation, and [...]

Charlotte Parker2013-09-20T15:02:52-07:00September, 2013|Oral Cancer News|

Swallowing exercises shown to preserve function in head and neck cancer patients receiving radiation

Source: www.healthnewsdigest.com Author: staff A study from UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center (JCCC) has found that head and neck cancer patients receiving radiation as part of their treatment were less likely to suffer unwanted side effects such as worsening of diet, need for a feeding tube, or narrowing of the throat passage if they complied with a set of prescribed swallowing exercises called a swallow preservation protocol (SPP) during therapy. The five-year study was led by Dr. Marilene Wang, JCCC member, professor-in-residence in the department of head and neck surgery, UCLA's David Geffen School of Medicine. The study was published online ahead of print in the journal Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery on August 27, 2013. Surgery and radiation (RT) have been the traditional treatments for head and neck cancer but with the advent of improved and targeted chemotherapy many types of this disease are treated with chemotherapy and radiation (chemoradiation or CRT) in the hope of preserving the tissue and structure. Despite the sparing of critical tissue, preservation does not always translate to normal, natural swallowing ability. Most patients who receive CRT have significant side effects during treatment and for a long time after recovery. Difficulty swallowing (dysphagia) is one of the most common unwanted side effects of RT and CRT, and is one of the main predictors of decreased patient quality of life after treatment. Wang's study was designed to evaluate the SPP, in which patients had swallow therapy before, during and after radiation treatment. The effectiveness [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2013-09-01T15:54:22-07:00September, 2013|Oral Cancer News|