Eating changes and nasopharyngeal cancer
Treatment for nasopharyngeal cancer can affect your eating. You might have difficulties with swallowing, taste changes, weight loss and a dry mouth. There are things you or your treatment team can do to help you cope with these problems. Most changes go back to normal once you have recovered from your treatment.
Difficulty swallowing
Radiotherapy
Radiotherapy for nasopharyngeal cancer can make your throat very sore. You will almost certainly have difficulty swallowing for a while. This can be very hard to cope with and may get you down. It usually gets better within a month of finishing treatment.
Your team gives you soothing mouthwashes and throat sprays. There are also numbing sprays and protective mouth gels which can help.
Your doctor gives you painkillers if your mouth and throat are very sore from radiotherapy. Taking these regularly as prescribed can help to control the pain and make you feel better.
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. This is usually a gastrostomy (PEG or RIG) tube. This goes through your skin into your stomach. You have liquid nutrition through the tube. This helps to reduce weight loss during treatment. Most people having chemoradiotherapy for nasopharyngeal cancer will have a PEG or RIG tube.
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 doctor will take out the feeding tube.
After surgery
Some people may have surgery to remove a small cancer that has come back in the nasopharynx. Chewing and swallowing are difficult after having surgery. This starts to get better as you recover and the swelling has gone down.
You are likely to have a gastrostomy (PEG or RIG) tube if you have surgery to remove cancer from your nasopharynx.
Keeping your mouth clean
Even if you are not eating, it is still very important to keep your mouth and teeth clean. This helps to stop infection developing. It also helps you to feel better. Your nurse will give you mouthwashes to use and tell you how best to keep your mouth clean.
Changes in taste
Radiotherapy and some chemotherapy drugs can affect your taste buds. This means you might notice changes in the way your food tastes. Some people say their food has a metallic, bitter or salty taste. Others complain that all foods taste the same.
Weight loss
People have often lost quite a bit of weight by the time they are diagnosed with some types of cancer. You might have had pain when you swallow for a time, which has put you off eating.
After your treatment, you need to build yourself up again. This can be difficult if you are still off your food. The dietitian at the hospital can help you with how best to do this.
You (or the person who usually provides your meals) might need to think about your diet. We are all so used to choosing low fat products these days that it can be difficult to stop when you are trying to put on weight. Remember to buy whole milk and full fat versions of food such as yoghurts.
If you are really off your food, eating little and often is easier to cope with than a huge plateful. Your doctor or dietitian can give you some nutrition drinks. You can sip these through the day as well as eating meals.
A 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 moisteners for your mouth, or stimulants for your salivary glands. You might find it helps to carry a bottle of water with you, so you can keep taking small sips to moisten your mouth. This should make you more comfortable.
You are also more likely to get an infection or tooth decay if your mouth is dry. So you need to keep an eye on this and have regular check ups with your dentist.
