Hi. I am DanT and a Canadian. I'm a newbie at the forum but a survivor of oral cancer surgery and radiation treatment and have a wonderful host of stories both good and bad to share, or try to help you through some of the times you may be going through. I had a modified radical which is to say half my tongue, half my jaw removed and replaced, the floor of my mouth removed and replaced with thigh tissue and all the nodes and muscle completely off the right side of my neck. Dry mouth is my world. Good Luck to you all

Dan T, welcome. Can you tell us how long ago you went through your treatment? You've had a whopper of a surgery ! Please do share your stories- "the good and bad". You could really help someone by doing this. Thanks for joining in. Amy in the Ozarks.

Hey Dan!
Another Canadian...Sorry to meet you under these circumstances. When did you undergo treatment? Were you treated in Ottawa, or did you go to Toronto?

I love Ottawa, lived there for a couple of years. I used to really enjoy jumping on my bike on a summer evening and riding along the canal from Cooper (where I lived) to the lake.

I'm looking forward to hearing about your journey.
Wayne
(a fellow Canuck)

Hi Guys. Your never alone on this journey.
My little trip started in November of 2005 with a small plugged spit gland under my chin, a small swelling of a gland, I found it! NO pain , no worry. I asked my dentist to suck it out with his vacuum hose, NO!, and I ended up at the ear,nose and throat specialist wnere I live in Oakville Ont.These treatments where all paid for by the government health plan, not private. I can't afford that stuff.
The first biopsy's, I had two sets of four needle biopsy and four surgical tissue sample removal, where done in Oakville at the Trafalger Memorial by my ear nose surgeon but when the source of the malignancy was discovered to be the floor of my mouth and the "margins"- of the Biopsy were not clean, this demanded the major surgery and could not be handled by my local surgeon or the hospital equipment.
I was shipped down town Toronto. Princess Margaret Hospital, the big cancer hotel for Canada. Many stories and adventures later the surgery took place in April of 2006 across the street from PMH at the Toronto General Hospital by a very highly recomended and skilled surgical team. The opperation itself took around 12 hours and I was in hospital a total of 10 days.All went well as I survived that ordeal as the surgeon said I would and then the fun began.-Radiation thereapy started 6 weeks later June 06 2006 or if you like the wierd stuff 666. I had 6weeks plus 3 days for a total of 33 sessions of radiation. One trip per day Monday thru Friday to Toronto from Oakville to get zapped. Average length of day around 6hours. The radiation treatment itself is painless but the after effects are awfull and each person goes through their own level of horror depending on the amount of radiation you get. The initial worst part of the radiation treetment was a plastic mesh face molded mask I had to wear which locked my head and shoulders to the table, very claustraphobic and restrictive.If you get one make sure you can swallow and breath do not accept it if you can't its uncomfortable. As I lost weight during the treetment the mask became more bearable plus the fact I also learned to take a relaxant about 15 minutes before the dose. I got the relaxant off the radiation oncologist good stuff.
The radiation treatment consists of around 30 minutes set up and about 15 minutes of machine time for a total of 45 minutes max. Horrible at first but as the team gets to know you and vice versa things speed up dramaticly. In the 15 mins of machine time there is about 12 minutes of xrays and cat scans to make sure your in exactly the right spot and a few seconds of actual radiation dosage.As you go so shall ye learn. I thought I'd got off rely lightly with the after effects of the radiation as nothing seemed to change apart from loosing weight which Iput down to the liguid diet I was now on, and a thickening of saliva from saliva to goop/drool. I mentioned this to the radiation technicians as I was leaving after my last treatment and they said, " Oh didn't you know, the longer it takes for the efects of the radiation to begin means thats how long after the treatment ends the effects will continue to show up after the treatment is finished". So I had five weeks of virtualy nothing so that means I have five weeks of worsening? "YES!"
Its now been seven months after the radiation and I'm still not fully recovered. I have no saliva at all, I have barely any taste at all and my facial hair grows back in patches so I only have to shave about once a week which I supose is something good because before I had to shave twice a day. The first four months I didn't have to shave at all and my wife's girlfreinds where jealous of my baby smooth skin. All the old skin around the treated area and the opperation scars had turned black and fell off leaving brand new baby bum,pink fleash underneath.
Well I hope I haven't scared you but that's some of my journey. I still don't eat solid foods, I try but without saliva it's like trying to chew down a wad of kleenex.
If you have any more questions or need any more of my journey just drop me a line. I can help you with the frustrations and angers you will go through, the thoughts and evil visitors you will receive and most of all I can tell you how you will hurt the people who most love you. Remember without these loving caring people you will not survive. Don't hurt them too badly. You are not alone DanT.

Heck of an journey. I myself did not have to have rad so I can not comment on that. The chemo side had its pitfalls but not to the rad extremes. I'm glad to hear you are doing ok and with a little luck the taste buds will return. That was the hardest part for me to handle.

Are you getting any speech therapy? This helps tremendously.

Hi guys. I didn't receive the Chemo side of the treatment because the chemo oncologist said it would kill me so that was an easy descision to make. She did it for me. NO! you are not getting chemo, period.
Previous neck injury and nerve damage plus hearing loss and damage to left ear drum and bone structure would or could create further hearing loss and possible paralysis. Also a throat infection I cocstantly get would have resulted in pneumonia and possible death. So I escaped one torment and I'm still not sure which is the best way to go. Never will now. Good Luck DanT.