Hi,
First of all 59 is pretty young. I'm nearly 10 years older than you and full of beans after surgery and radiation last year.

I'm confused, though. Did you have a "flap" to replace part of your tongue or to replace part of the tongue AND part of the jaw?

I've never heard of cancer growing on the flap or implant before but I guess any cells in the body can mutate over the decades. I'm glad you had yearly check-ups!

Some people have all their teeth out before radiation but I was left with about half my unsound teeth and I'm paying for it now. I'm getting quite a lot of dental decay. Sometimes I wish I'd had them out. On the other hand, the remaining teeth act as an anchor for my partial metal denture. The decay is fairly minor and seems to be fixable. I'd take lots of advice before getting your teeth removed.

You sound as if you've got through this shock diagnosis with your sense of humour intact. It's a tough thing to endure but this site will help you as you undergo treatment:)

Best wishes