Had my pre-op on Tuesday for my neck surgery (right side) next week.Told it will be a modified radical neck dissection and more extensive than the neck dissection on my left side last year.
I also have a growing nodule in my neck which I'm told is very aggressive, though I had put my Sherlock hat on and kinda sussed that out as it's grown over the last 4 weeks and I'd say it's now about the size of a golf ball under my chin.Yeah . . .I know,exclamation mark.
I'm having this removed as well and have been told that they will be working very close to the nerves controlling my tongue.
Potentially, due to this and the margins they may have to remove, I may be left with an inability to swallow and/or talk.
I was expecting a droopy mouth on the right and a sore/stiff shoulder, as I had these last year (for a few weeks),but this news has been a bit of a bombshell.
I'm having my surgery - I've decided I've no real alternative if I want to keep living as long as I can, as I've been told a number of times my condition is not curable.However, I am curious to see if anyone has been through a similar scenario and how their swallowing/talking was affected.

brendan

My salvage surgery (medical term for surgery intended to eradicate recurrent tumours when radiation and chemo failed) wasn't quite the same as yours but it did result in never being able to eat, drink, or even swallow (without aspiration into lungs). It's especially tough here in the US at Thanksgiving time, but otherwise quite doable. While I hope that you don't end up with such results, just a quick note to say it's not as bad as it sounds. Think of it as an effortless way to achieve ascetism. No worries about overeating with the automatic fasting inherent in feeding tubes. It's been over three years now since my surgery and tincture of time does work.
Charm

Brendan please do t believe them when they tell you it's not curable. Have them do the surgery and push for more rads and chemo if you can.

Brendan, Kris has neither a tongue nor a voice box and he can talk.
Tammy

Kris is awesome! in fact you all are.

Brendan, Best wishes for Tuesday. Hope you get the best result. Sally

Brendan, your news sucks, but always remember that they give you bad options so you are prepared. It's not fated. They told me I wouldn't be able to speak for an extended period, and that it was 99% that I would have to have chemo and rad.

I appeared in court 19 days after my surgery, and have determined this week that no chemo for sure at the moment, and no rads. We're on hold to monitor for recurrance.

I was going to say keep your chin up, but that might be considered bad taste (I'm not politically correct - my joke to people was that other lawyers were cheering that at least this would shut me up for a while, lol).

Truly, we're all behind you, hoping for the best on Tuesday

Brendon, I had three neck dissections in two years, one radical, to the left side of my neck, in addition too, three courses of radiation to the left neck, and still can swallow, taste, etc. They tell you the risks involved for any surgery, which are usually low, but is something to consider, but they would usually not want to do surgery if the risk outweighed the benefit. I too was concerned about the potential effects, but having a good surgeon quelled those fears, and the risks were in the low percentage. I suffer no paralysis, or any other loss except loss of feeling in my neck, little swelling, little stiffness, but major loss of mobility, except rasing my arm overhead due to the neck muscle, vein and nerve being taken out with the RND. A modified dissection preserves one or more of these structures. Good luck.