Hello

My wife had a t4 turmor removed as well as here right bottom jaw bone. on 01/16/04. The area in here mouth was repaired by peck flap. She then received 34 rad tx.These were finished around the last of March. She just had a follow up ct scan done. The results were that she had no recurrence of tumor All of here teeth were removed before surgey.What type of time frame are we looking at before new teeth can be made and what will they do about the jaw that was removed.

tedebear, Hello and welcome, I had all my bottom teeth removed with the neck dissection in feb 04. I am looking at 2 years. But this is me. I also have a flap put in, the flap has not completely gone all the way down yet. But it is getting smaller, just takes time,,a lot of it. Can she open her mouth very wide??I can't yet tho I am trying, got some exercises today that will help me get mine open. Did they not replace the jaw bone?? Hummm, I am on a feeding tube as well as a trache,,,is your wife on these,Be there for her, hold her tight, you have a big big job ahead of you,, we are here if we can be of any help or if you just need someone to listen..Miss Vicki

Miss Vicki

She did have a trach and feeding tube. She had the trach for about four days and was removed before she left the hosiptal. She had the feeding tube for about one month. She has lost about 90 pounds. This has been since nov 2003 when we first found she had the tumor. They did not replace the jaw bone at the time of surgey. At first she could not this is some better now. She is still having the dry mouth and trouble swallowing solid foods.The flap is still bigger than we thought it would be. My wife also had trouble moving her arm over her head. She had phy therapy this helped her to regain her range of motion and strength.She has come a long way I just pray for strength to help her the rest of the way.

Hello Tedebear,
I had pretty much the same operation as your wife had, although they replaced my jawbone with the small bone from my leg. Why didn't they replace your wifes? I also did radiation and lost half of my bottom teeth. I had the operation April 16, 2003 and ended radiation last July. My mouth opens as wide as it did pre surgery, my biggest issue is that the left half of my lower lip is numb and that is bothersome to me.
I am in the process of getting implants now. Your wife needs to find a dentist that is familiar with someone that has had their mouth radiated and that dentist will set her up with a treatment plan. There is no reason for her to go without teeth.
Minnie

tedebear, I had the my jawbone replaced and a piece of bone from my leg to re-build it. I also have a hard time with my right arm, i can't move it much over my head..But I am working on that..I cannot open my mouth yet, working on that to. It sounds like she has done great and has came a long long way, she should be so so proud of herself,,I am for her, and cannot wait until I can do these things again..It will just take a lot of work and time..You hold her hand and you both can walk thru this together...ALways Vicki Lynn

Tedebear
I asked my dentist if I was a candidate for dental implants, She stated that I was but that you have to wait two years after radiation to start implants. She further stated that she could build me a dental prosthesis made from some kind of rubber compound as a temporary measure until implants are vaible.
Darrell

Hi Darrell,
I took alot of time exploring the implants, asked tons of questions of people on this board and have talked to people in this area that have already had the procedure done. At NO time did anyone ever say to me that I had to wait two years?? What is your dentist's reasoning for this? Her opinion is in the minority, at least from what knowledge I have collected. Just wondered if you could elaborate a little for me. Thanks!
Minnie

Darrell, I had a nerve transplanted to my mouth and after rad, was told I would need to wait six months to put any dentures on it. As it turned out, I lost the rest of my teeth before then, so went with the implants after 30 hyperbaric oxygen treatments. I did not have any involvement of the jaw bone, which may have made a difference. This just proves there are as many different opinions as there are patients. Good luck!

Joanna,
Tell me more about the nerve you had transplanted?
Minnie

Well, Minnie, I did have some fancy stuff with nerves done in my neck, but I misspoke, or miswrote in this case, and should have written "vein." I was awakened hourly for all the days in the hospital to check that it was working. The original numbness in my mouth, tongue, and lip are largely gone 2.5 years out, so things may improve. Nerves are funny. At one time my neck was just about completely numb, but has gradually come back. About a month ago on a car trip, I thought I would go nuts because my neck itched like it would never stop. When it did, the following day, I had even more feeling there. At this point, nothing surprises me, including the fact that I make more stupid mistakes now (grin).