My husband is 4 years out from treatment and surgery for cancer in hi

Posted by blondeboss @blondeboss, 1 day ago

He had all of his teeth removed in December due to infection and severe deterioration . Now his left side of his jaw (he received stronger radiation on that side) is deteriorating. We knew this was a possibility, but we were hoping for the best.

Can anyone tell me about their experience with Mandible reconstruction?

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William Olsen, Volunteer Mentor | @hrhwilliam | 23 hours ago

Hi @blondeboss It's called Osteoradionecrosis or bone death due to radiation. I hope that isn't the case with your husband but if it is, there is a fix for that, of course. Not a fun fix but here I sit now almost five years out eating corn on the cob with a smile albeit a bit of a pirate smile. I wrote about this with this link: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/mandible-reconstruction-with-fibula-free-flap-is-this-an-option/
Cancer is the gift that keeps on giving, whether you want it or not.
All I will tell you is to make double sure your surgical team is well versed in this complex operation. It takes several weeks to work up the procedure specific to each patient. You likely would need to travel to a large clinic or hospital somewhere to have this done. For me the choice of Mayo Clinic was due primarily because the Mayo team has trained other teams around the world in this and has likely the most experience. In addition, they were great in all areas, so great that here I am still volunteering help in this area on Connect.
Any questions please don't hesitate to ask. Courage.