Yes - a good surgeon can avoid cutting a nerve however there are several factors that come into play. Firstly the removal of a lump in your neck and the subsequent nodes is a bit different - than a combo neck dissection and hemiglossectomy, it's a little like filleting a fish to be honest. Firstly, unless they split your jaw - they have to actually get to the inside of your throat area and the floor of your mouth therefore it's not quite as superficial as a neck dissection. My surgeon who is the top guy in TO (even did hidden stitches on my neck) split me from behind my ear, to the midline of my throat. He then went in through my neck and removed the floor of my mouth and a third of my tongue (including some of the tongue base - then reconstructed the area. Inside my throat I have stitches that run from my oral tongue down the side of the inside of my throat to under my ear. It's hard to describe. In richl's case the location of his cancer made it unnecessary to cut the nerves, and muscle (which is actually what controls the shoulder) so it really does depend on they type of surgery and involvement. There are also nerves in your tongue that may need to be cut because that is a cancer pathway.

I don't think there's anyone here who's had a neck dissection and hemiglossectomy that hasn't had their sternocleidomastoid muscle cut, and subsequent nerves. Anyone? It really does depend on the location of your cancer.

Best of luck