 Administrator, Director of Patient Support Services Patient Advocate (old timer, 2000 posts)
Joined: Jun 2007 Posts: 10,507 Likes: 8 | There will be very few who will have gone thru this procedure. The mandibulectomy surgery I had, the one side of my lips were slightly affected. This is something a plastic surgeon can fix. Your husband may need to wait a full year for the procedure to "take". There are tiny blood vessels that are sewn together and the swelling takes a full year to completely go down. Bring this up to the doc. Sometimes they will go back in and do whats called a debridement. Thats where they will scale down the free flap. So if they do go back in again, they can open up his lips a little more. Yes, this can be fixed!
ChristineSCC 6/15/07 L chk & by L molar both Stag I, age44 2x cispltn-35 IMRT end 9/27/07 -65 lbs in 2 mo, no caregvr Clear PET 1/08 4/4/08 recur L chk Stag I surg 4/16/08 clr marg 215 HBO dives 3/09 teeth out, trismus 7/2/09 recur, Stg IV 8/24/09 trach, ND, mandiblctmy 3wks medicly inducd coma 2 mo xtended hospital stay, ICU & burn unit PICC line IV antibx 8 mo 10/4/10, 2/14/11 reconst surg OC 3x in 3 years very happy to be alive  | 
