Lowanne,
Jack is right. The flap is sewed down to the bottom of his mouth. If he has any tongue left at all then he'll be able to talk. It won't be that clear but you'll be able to understand him. The flap is really to keep him from aspirating, but will aid him in speech and possibly swallowing later down the road. I drink liquids very well, but eating solid food is another story for me.
I'm glad he can still taste some. The little things are what can pull you through some days.
Hang in there!
Lynn
Stage 3, N0, M0 oral tongue cancer survivor, 85-90% of tongue removed, neck disection, left tonsil removed, chemo/radiation treatments, surgery 11/03, raditation ended 1/04, lung mets discovered 4/04,
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