Feasibility of Early Swallowing and Speech Intervention for Head and Neck Cancer Patients Treated SURGically

Patients will receive 3 face-to-face sessions with a speech-language pathologist (SLP), each with a specific goal, namely: pre-surgical educational, a post-operative day 3 therapy, and post-operative day 7 therapy. Following discharge from hospital, participants will be seen by an SLP for 4 weekly sessions, offered via telehealth or face-to-face depending on the patient's clinic schedule and/or availability.

Participants will receive the current standard of care, which includes a referral to SLP in response to suspicion of a swallowing problem from either assessment by the medical team and/or patient report.