Tingling and numbness (still) 2 years after surgery

will6103
will6103 Member Posts: 6 Member
in Head and Neck Cancer #1

Hello,

I was diagnosed with small squimish cell carcinoma on the left side of my tongue. I had surgery to remove it and a graft was taken from my wrist to reconstruct my tongue. My question would be, if you had the graft taken from your wrist did you still have some tingling/numbness in your hand or arm or did it go away over time.

When they did my surgery they also removed the lymph nodes on that side of the neck to prevent future migration of the cancer. Once that somewhat healed they followed up with 6 weeks of radiation therapy. That left me with burns on my neck and pain in the mouth but it does eventually get better. Keep the positive mindset!

Comments

  • wbcgaruss
    wbcgaruss Member Posts: 2,466 Member
    #2

    Will, at some point it should get better and your case of being 2 years post-treatment and still having these issues could be because of nerve damage. I have some effects of nerve damage or maybe I should call it changes. There is a spot on my cheek inside on the left side and it feels sore when I am chewing like there is an irritation there. I told my ENT about it and said there must be a sore spot on the inside of my cheek and I was concerned because of cancer. He checked in my mouth and felt around the area outside for lumps or unevenness and said everything was normal and that there was no sore area inside. I was operated on that side for lymph nodes and he said nerves can be affected by an operation and he was sure this was the case. I ran it by my dentist during a regular check-up and he confirmed that everything looked and felt normal. By the way, this comes and goes it is not there all the time. So some of your issues are probably nerves but I would recommend getting with your ENT and seeing if there is something they can do to help relieve some of this. You may want to ask them to refer you to a speech therapist and see if they can determine anything and acupuncture is maybe a possibility.

    Wishing You The Best

    Take Care, God Bless

    Russ

  • will6103
    will6103 Member Posts: 6 Member
    #3

    Initially, I believed my discomfort was attributed to nerve damage, and to my surprise, my surgeon expressed astonishment at the presence of any tingling sensation in my hand. Despite undergoing reconstruction, certain areas on my tongue still experience soreness from rubbing against my teeth. The reconstructed area lacks sensitivity, causing me to inadvertently lose food on that side of my mouth. Consequently, I've adopted a routine of flossing, flushing, and brushing after each meal to prevent any lingering particles that might irritate the affected side.

    In addition to the altered sensation in my reconstructed area, I've also noticed numbness in my neck, a result of the lymph nodes being removed during surgery. Unlike the tingling sensation in my hand, the numbness in my neck doesn't manifest as a tingling sensation but rather as a complete absence of feeling. Fortunately, it's not bothersome, but it necessitates a heightened awareness of my oral hygiene to avoid potential irritations or complications on that side of my mouth.

  • wbcgaruss
    wbcgaruss Member Posts: 2,466 Member
    #4

    will, looking at your response I believe you know where you are at with your situation and have a handle on it. My neck on the left side also is numb to the touch from the lymph operation from my ear down to my shoulder. Anyone who has had head and neck surgery or radiation will need to be extremely vigilant about their oral care.

    Unfortunately, we have some leftovers and extra things to deal with post-treatment but the issue for our care teams was to save our lives and eradicate the cancer which they did and I know they did their best to minimize damage and I am thankful.

    Our new Abinormal

    NEGU (Never Ever Give Up)

    Take care, God Bless

    Russ

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