Hello there,

I am reaching out because my mother had a dental check up at Sloan and it was discovered she has "extensive tooth decay through her mouth." (Somehow her regular dentist who she sees every 3 months seemed to miss the decay, but that's another story. And she usually only goes to Sloan for an annual check-up. )

She underwent surgery and radiation treatment in the spring/summer of 2011. She had a good amount of her hard and soft palate removed, along with a salivary gland or two, a few teeth, and lymph nodes in the left side her neck. She wears an obturator and has limited capacity to open her mouth due to radiation treatment. (She had the surgery done at Sloan in 2011 but the radiation elswhere).

Sloan advised her she had extensive tooth decay and that their staff could address the decay in her mouth but she is 77 and was told multiple visits to Sloan would be necessary to complete whatever procedures need to be done. She doesn't want to have to commute back and forth to Manhattan but my sibling and I offered to set her up in a hotel and we'd take turns staying with her.

Her regular/general dentist is not equipped to deal with the tooth decay given her history with oral cancer, not that I'd want her going to him anyway. I know she can't have certain teeth extracted because of radiation treatment. I think extraction leads her vulnerable to disease of the jawbone due to radiation.

We haven't learned what procedures will be needed yet as she is consulting with a local dentist. I'm just wondering if anyone has experienced a similar situation.

Thanks for listening,

Maura