396 – From NPO to Full Diet: Why Patients Are Dilating Their Own Esophagus

On this episode, we're joined by a head and neck surgeon and a speech-language pathologist from the University of South Florida and Tampa General Hospital who have built a self-dilation program that is changing lives for head and neck cancer patients with recurrent esophageal strictures. Their program currently has 20 patients self-dilating, and the outcomes are remarkable: 80% of patients who came in with feeding tubes have had them removed. We talk about how their multidisciplinary clinic model works (surgeon and SLP evaluating patients together, in the same room), how they identify good candidates for self-dilation, what the training process looks like, the role of the infinity balloon in initial dilation, how they navigated the cost barrier of a $3,400 dilator, and patient stories that show what's possible when you keep the esophagus open long enough for therapy to actually work. If you work with head and neck cancer patients dealing with recurrent strictures, this episode is a must-listen. Get the show notes: https://syppodcast.com/396 The post 396 – From NPO to Full Diet: Why Patients Are Dilating Their Own Esophagus appeared first on Swallow Your Pride Podcast.