Kevin Jerge survived Oropharyngeal Head & Neck Cancer | Modulated Radiation | Go To Your Happy Place

In this episode of the Cancer Interviews podcast, Kevin Jerge shares how he survived Oropharyngeal head & neck cancer with modulated radiation therapy and went on to author the book titled Go To Your Happy Place.
In 2013, Kevin, from Jackson, Tennessee, tells host Bruce Morton he was attending a trade show in Chicago when he experienced an unusually sore throat, sore enough that he sought medical attention when he got back home on a Friday. His general practitioner took a look at his throat and told Kevin he would need to have his tonsils removed. Kevin thought this could wait a week or two, but his doctor told Kevin he would need a tonsillectomy the following Monday.
Once the procedure was completed, Kevin was told his tonsils had cancerous cells, but there remained lymph nodes that resulted in a diagnosis of a type of Stage IV head and neck cancer, known as oropharyngeal cancer.
At first, Kevin was told that because it was Stage IV head and neck cancer, out of an abundance of caution, he would have to undergo a regimen of chemotherapy treatment and radiation treatment. Upon further review, his oncologist said the chemotherapy would not be necessary, but that it would be necessary to undergo seven weeks of radiation treatment, known as Intense Modulated Radiation Therapy.
During those seven weeks, Kevin had to go into the hospital five days a week. He had to be fitted with a plastic mask that went tightly over his face, which at times made it difficult to breathe. Kevin was then bolted to a table and slid into a tube where the radiation targeted nine areas of his neck. He said the inside of his neck felt like sunburn and yet he was being forced to go back out into the sun. Not only was it painful to eat or drink, but he lost the function of his tastebuds, and experienced tinnitus, a ringing of the ears. Because his food consumption was sharply reduced, he lost a lot of weight. Perhaps the only bright spot was that Kevin got to eat lots of his favorite flavor of ice cream, mint chocolate chip. That said, for months after the conclusion of the treatment, he still felt the burning sensation in his throat.
While Kevin was undergoing radiation treatment, he opted to run toward head and neck cancer rather than run from it. As uncomfortable as each session was, Kevin told himself, he “gets” to go in for treatment, not that he “has” to. He also benefited from the undying support of his wife, Elizabeth, his kids and his network of friends. Kevin did say there were times that being on the receiving of such care could be a challenge because there would be instances in which his biggest supporters just didn’t know what to say or do. When that happened, he extended care to them.
Eventually, Kevin reached the point everyone diagnosed with cancer seeks, that being his last day of treatment and the hospital’s bell-ringing ceremony. Kevin says when that happens, everybody in the building knows about it, the doctors, the nurses, non-medical staff and of course, the patients. He said his oncologist brought out what looked like a beat-up, century-old bell.
Kevin’s journey inspired him to write a book. It is titled, “Go To Your Happy Place.” The title was inspired by advice given to him by a nurse when he was physically and mentally dealing with the plastic mask fitted tightly over his face, being bolted to a table and getting radiation shots in nine places around his neck. She suggested he think of things that made him happy, and for Kevin, that went going back to numerous episodes within what he said was a very happy childhood back in Buffalo.
It is that childhood, all those unforgettable fun experiences with his chums, that provides the backdrop for “Go To Your Happy Place,” episodes that are interwoven with Kevin’s account of his the early stages of his cancer journey.
Additional Resources:
“Go To Your Happy Place” by Kevin Jerge tinyurl.com/Go-To-Your-Happy-...

[@CancerInterviews]

Kevin, thanks for sharing your story, and best wishes with your book!