Oncological Speech Language Pathology Services
Shannon Neuro Rehab Clinic now offers Speech Language Pathology Services with a Physiological Oncology Rehabilitation Institute (PORi) Head and Neck Cancer Certified therapist.
Do you or a loved one experience any of the following since being diagnosed with cancer?
- Achiness, fullness, heaviness, stiffness, and/or swelling in head and/or neck
- Discomfort when looking both ways while driving or crossing the street
- Changes in memory
- Changes in the sound of your voice
- Choking or coughing during your meals
- Difficulty with finding words
- Difficulty with management of or questions regarding feeding tube
- Difficulty of or questions regarding tracheostomy care
- Feeling like food/drink “gets stuck” in your throat
- Mental fog: feeling of mental dullness
- Shortness of breath
- Slurred speech: frequent requests to repeat what you said
- When should you seek a referral?
- As soon as you are diagnosed with head and neck cancer is ideal, but a Speech Therapist can help during any time throughout your oncological journey
- Why Speech Therapy?
- A speech therapist can help with:
- Establishment of baseline measurements
- Identify risk factors for or changes in:
- Cognition or thinking
- Lymphedema
- Speech quality
- Swallowing
- Voice
- Why is it important to start speech therapy before starting treatment?
- Prehab or skilled intervention prior to starting oncology treatment helps with optimizing function prior to:
- Chemotherapy
- Radiation treatment
- Surgery
- Also helps with:
- Decreasing frequency for return to ER visits
- Decreasing length of hospital stays
- Improving your overall functional recovery from cancer and oncological treatment
- Prehab or skilled intervention prior to starting oncology treatment helps with optimizing function prior to:
- A speech therapist can help with: