If you’re no longer able to swallow or you are otherwise unable to get the food you need, then you need to get nutrition somehow. This is when you should consider alternative ways of eating. This may be through a nasal tube, a gastronomy (G) tube, a button that is flush against the stomach, or the G tube plus a tube that goes to your small intestine (jejunem).
If you need nutrition long-term and you have sufficient stomach function, your doctor will probably want you to get a Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastronomy (PEG) tube or button. These are the most common form of feeding tubes among oral cancer patients. The surgery for placement of a PEG is easy, involves little risk, and takes no longer than 20 minutes.
PEG tubes are placed–after you’ve been sedated–with the aid of an endoscope (hence the word "Endoscopic" in the name). The endoscope is a small tube, with a light and camera on the end, which allows surgeons to see into the esophagus and stomach. The scope enters through the mouth, and continues down the throat to assist in guiding placement of the tube through the wall of the stomach. This method allows the doctor to choose the best location in the stomach to place the PEG tube. Once a location for the tube is chosen, a small incision is made on the outside abdomen into the stomach. The surgeon then pushes a fine wire through the opening and attaches it to the endoscope. With wire attached, the doctor pulls the scope back up through your esophagus and out of your mouth. The endoscope then gets unattached, the new PEG tube is attached to the wire, and the wire gets pulled back down t