 Senior Patient Advocate Patient Advocate (old timer, 2000 posts)
Joined: Sep 2006 Posts: 8,311 | There was a time, prior to IMRT, where the radiation path was broader and the resulting damage was greater where it was common for the doctors to recommend pulling all the bad to marginal teeth which usually meant pulling them all as the previous typical oral cancer candidate was a long term tobacco and alcohol abuser with poor oral hygiene practices. Since the use of IMRT we have also seen a different "typical" oral cancer candidate where there teeth are usually not bad to begin with so most now only recommend pulling any that need to be pulled and protecting the rest with daily fluoride treatments usually beginning prior to the beginning of rad.
David
Age 58 at Dx, HPV16+ SCC, Stage IV BOT+2 nodes, non smoker, casual drinker, exercise nut, Cisplatin x 3 & concurrent IMRT x 35,(70 Gy), no surgery, no Peg, Tx at Moffitt over Aug 06. Jun 07, back to riding my bike 100 miles a wk. Now doing 12 Spin classes and 60 outdoor miles per wk. Nov 13 completed Hilly Century ride for Cancer, 104 miles, 1st Place in my age group. Apr 2014 & 15, Spun for 9 straight hrs to raise $$ for YMCA's Livestrong Program. Certified Spin Instructor Jun 2014.
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