Ask Dr Miriam

Q My husband finds it difficult to swallow his food and has to drink with each mouthful. He says he also has a lump in his throat.

A Difficulty swallowing is called dysphagia and becomes more common with age, affecting one in 17 people in their lifetime. It affects up to half of residents in nursing homes and two-thirds of people with dementia in care homes. It’s also common after a stroke.

Swallowing difficulties are seen with motor neurone disease, Parkinson’s and multiple sclerosis. It’s important that your husband’s dysphagia is differentiated from catarrh and throat discomfort with a feeling of a lump in the throat which can affect one in three people. But the most important condition to exclude is throat or oesophageal cancer. It’s imperative he sees a specialist for an examination called endoscopy where a small tube with a camera is passed down his throat into his gullet and a small piece of tissue is taken for lab analysis.

In many instances cancer isn’t found but conditions like acid reflux are.