Update time! Sorry to be slow to follow up. I had my neck dissection here in London (UK) a month ago, it went well and they found very little to remove, so my surgery was "bog simple" and the extent was minimal, meaning I've ended up with almost no nerve damage at all; I've only ended up with a numb area under my right jaw line, down to the horizontal incision line. They gave me some stretches to do, but I've not needed any phisio, and now, a month in, I have minimal stiffness or soreness.

The really good news is that the material they did remove only contained dead cells; no viable cancer at all! So, my cancer is in clinical remission (they won't use the "cured" word for five years). This is the best possible outcome at this time, and means my radiation/chemo in Canada was successful.

The numb area under my jaw line has already shrunk noticeably. It's still quite odd-feeling to touch it, and shaving gives me the creeps, but as things go this is not so bad.

Regarding Monicacc's question about how common nerve damage is, I'm afraid that will entirely depend on how far they decide to go in removing material, and I understand this ultimately is decided during surgery. The more they remove, the more potential for trauma or damage to nerves. In my case I was fortunate, in that they found almost nothing to remove.

For me, ultimately, the neck dissection has been much less of an issue than chemo/radiation treatment, which I had first, ending in late April 2010. I didn't have significant pain following surgery (only required the local equivalent of Tylenol and Ibuprofen), although the drain was pretty gross. They removed that after two days in my case, and sent me home. A week later they removed the tape over the surgery scar (and I was pleasantly surprised at how little the scar was visible already at that point) *and* gave me the good news about the material they removed.

I'm having much more trouble with the residual side-effects of my radiation/chemo treatment: dry mouth (much more trouble than I would have imagined), numb soles of feet, changes to digestion, sensitive fingernails(?), sensitive hair follicles(?), dry skin(?), vision changes (maybe just age?), trouble with concentration, trouble with optimism (lack thereof, although this may be related to other life changes). I find myself in London because this is where my wife has professional employment, but I'm having real trouble fitting myself into this surprisingly foreign place, and of course, employment prospects seem very grim right about now.

I can only give it time, and try to be a good house-husband. Oh, and try to get some exercise, which has historically been my answer to life's challenges. I've started climbing the stairs in the 11-floor building we live in, and jog/walking along the Thames. I'm quite out of shape after 8 months of inactivity.