Help/Advice Needed - I have searched OCF & found one other member who had the the rebuild procedure I did. "Pete D" for those of you who remember him.

His experience was: "They removed all of my tongue, except one portion on left side at top of tongue base (that leaves me with some taste buds). Since the thigh donor site isn't apparently as vascular as the wrist site, they wrapped Doppler sensors around the major vein and artery, with wires hanging out to listen to the vessels. That meant that instead of sticking pins in my flap every few hours, they listened to the blood flow (and still made some sticks)."

For me, that surgery was 8 years ago (on Friday April 6th), and wouldn't you know it - I have a bizarre side effect. At the time of the surgery, the wires instaled went from the doppler system, into my tongue and somehow went across my neck (near the surgery line).

I recently had a biopsy on a weeping lump in my neck - which - thankfully - was not cancer. Turns out what it is is the broken end wires of the doppler system that was put in 8 years ago. They are protruding and causing a weeping lump. My body does tend to - eventually - hit the "reject" button on things other people retain such as certain sutures. My surgeon says that I am "unusual" in this regard. And now, for some reason, my body has hit the Reject button on these wires.

Since the 1st surgery, both sides of my neck have been radiated.

I am concerned that removal of the wires will be difficult and/or dangerous. I am also concerned that I cannot leave these things in there.

Anyone have any experience with this? My surgeon expected this result and during the biopsy process explained to his new staff that this doppler wire monitoring was a throwback to something they "used to use in the old days". (I think he was bugging me there - but frankly I'm happy to be around to remind them of the "old days")

What to do? Is this an issue for the Plastics Team?

Hope to hear from someone!

Donna