My sister, Shirley, had a tube inserted in early Sept. 2012. She has never been hungry and always feels full. Takes 6 cans per day and doesn't want that much...but Doc said she must have it to get through radiation.

Does ANYONE know the answer to this? Does Medicare pay any part for an obturator if done in a Prosthodontist's office? Thank you for any help. Sandra

Sandra - I had to call Medicare about coverage for something unrelated to cancer and they were able to tell me the percentage of what they covered for the procedure. If you have supplemental insurance in addition, they may cover whatever Medicare does not cover. Maybe someone else has a more complete or specific answer as far as cost of the obturator. The number I called is on your Medicare card (800 number).

Sandra, it is imperative that your sister get enough nutrition and hydration while preparing for and going thru radiation treatments. Every single day she needs 2500 calories and 48 oz of water at a minimum, more of both is much better. Her body is under attack from the cancer and burns up calories at a very fast rate. Plus factor in her body trying to rebuild itself while fighting the cancer and the treatments and you can see why she needs that many calories every single day. Skipping a day and thinking it can be made up the next day wont work, the make up day never happens.

As far as medicare goes, call them and ask about durable medical equipment. Sorry but only a few members have an obturator and they may not be on medicare so its best to give them a call to be certain. please let us know what you find out as it may help someone else.

Anne-Marie, thanks so much for your response, and so quickly! I did call Medicare and they were not able to give me an answer. I also cannot (have not yet), found a Prosthodontist who accepts Medicare. I'll keep plugging away. This four and a half years has worn me down :-)

Sandra

Christine, thanks for your kind and informative note. When my sister had her surgery in 09/12, the Nutritionist put her on Jevity 1.2...1800 calories per day, 86g protein, & 261 carbs. Plus she takes 120 oz. of water. I'll check with her again. Shirley is 8 wks. post surgery and Radiation should begin in 2 weeks.

I did call Medicare. They were unable to give me an answer. And I worked with Social Security for over 20 years. That, in itself, causes me to be more frustrated. But I retired 20 years ago (I'm 70) and don't know any of the employees left. When I get an appropriate answer I will post it in the hopes of helping 'anyone' avoid all this confusion. An obturator costs between $2K - $4K. I also tried to edit my profile this afternoon but didn't succeed. I'll try again. Thank you so much, Sandra

I will be happy to help you if you have any difficulty in navigating the forum or editing your profile.

A signature GREATLY helps!!!! To make a signature, click on the "My Stuff" tab, then on the drop down menu click on "Edit Profile". From there, scroll to the bottom and type your info in the white box and "submit". By having a signature it will help other members get to know you faster and save them time from having to go thru all your posts and read everything to understand where you are coming from when asking a question. Many times, only by knowing some history can we answer a new members questions. By taking a couple minutes to do the signature it will get you more and better responses.

Another pointer, when asking questions PLEASE begin your own threads. When typing on someone else's thread your post will go unseen and also receive many less replies. When making a post if it has nothing to do with the original post or a natural turn in conversation, or if what you are writing is mainly about you or your patient, then that is considered hijacking. I know it can be tricky to get the hang of the forum but it really is very simple once you have made a few more posts you will get the hang of it and be a pro. Please let me know if I can help you with anything else to make it easier for you.