396 – From NPO to Full Diet: Why Patients Are Dilating Their Own Esophagus
Swallow Your Pride Podcast
Theresa Richard, MA, CCC-SLP, BCS-S
4.8 • 899 Ratings
🗓️ 4 May 2026
⏱️ 36 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
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.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hello, my friends. Welcome back to the Swalier Pride podcast. Today's guests I'm so excited about. I just love and adore these two and the work that they do. And it's just incredible. And I'm so excited for you to hear this episode. First, we have Jennifer Larson. She's an SLP at the University of South Florida, Division of Head and Neck Surgery. Her practice is dedicated to advancing innovative evaluation and |
| 0:20.9 | treatment approaches for swallowing disorders and alternative voice innovation options for head and neck |
| 0:26.7 | cancer patients. She particularly focuses on improving continuum of care pathways and understanding |
| 0:32.2 | the impact of community and social reintegration for individuals with head and neck cancer, |
| 0:37.1 | with the goal of enhancing both functional outcomes and overall quality ofation for individuals with head and neck cancer, with the goal of enhancing |
| 0:38.0 | both functional outcomes and overall quality of life for these individuals. And she is joined by her |
| 0:44.8 | wonderful E&T colleague, Dr. Yasmin Abdelotti. Dr. Yasmine Abdelotti is a head and neck surgeon |
| 0:51.9 | at the University of South Florida and Tampa General Hospital. |
| 0:55.0 | She received her training at Mayo Clinic in Arizona and did a fellowship in voice swallowing in airway disorders at a Joint Columbia Cornell program in New York City. |
| 1:04.0 | She works together in multidisciplinary clinics with speech language pathologists to provide patients with medical, surgical, and therapeutic care. |
| 1:24.1 | Welcome to the Swallow Your Pride podcast. I'm your host, Teresa Richard. I'm a board certified |
| 1:28.9 | specialist in swallowing and swallowing disorders, a mobile fees business owner and founder of |
| 1:33.9 | the MetSLP Collective. This podcast is all about delivering the latest evidence-based practice |
| 1:38.7 | to medical SLPs everywhere. Whether you're a new clinician seeking tangible tools for treatment |
| 1:43.7 | or a season |
| 1:44.5 | vet stuck in a rut. My goal is to help ditch the old school ways of the past that no longer |
| 1:49.3 | serve you or your patients, to reinvigorate your passion for our field, to broaden your |
| 1:53.6 | knowledge about our scope of practice, and to inspire you to practice at the top of your license. |
| 1:58.4 | So if you're listening, I encourage you to swallow your pride, |
| 2:01.3 | be open and willing to learn because let's face it, your patients deserve that kind of care. |
| 2:06.2 | With that, let's dive right in. Just a quick disclaimer that all statements and opinions expressed |
| 2:11.3 | in this episode do not reflect on the organizations associated with the speakers and are their |
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