Enhancing oral function in patients with flaccid facial nerve palsy using upper and lower lip tensor fascia lata slings

Source: www.physiciansweekly.com Author: staff The following is a summary of “Improving the oral function of patients with upper and lower lip tensor fascia lata slings for patients with flaccid facial nerve palsy,” published in the December 2023 issue of Oncology by Charters, et al. For a study, researchers sought to determine the factors associated with the loss of tongue-tip sensation and to analyze the changes in sensory function after partial glossectomy for oral tongue cancer (OTC). A total of 64 people who had undergone partial glossectomy for primary oral topography and had been followed up for at least three months were included in the research. In this study, both qualitative and objective tongue sensory assessments of the native tongue tip were carried out. The evaluations that were carried out were qualitative. Several different types of information were acquired, such as information on the pathological stage, surgical reconstruction, and oncologic excision. The number of patients who reported having loss of tongue-tip sensation was 10, equivalent to 15% of the patient population. As a result of multivariate analysis, it was shown that increasing the depth of resection (DOR) is an independent predictor of the presence of loss of tongue-tip sensation. The risk of increased when it was present, increasing at a threshold DOR of 1.3 cm. In addition, during the qualitative tongue examination, it was discovered that it was associated with a worse subjective quality of life and a lower perceptive speaking performance for the individual. According to the results of the [...]

Silent no more: Woman lends voice to hope after cancer

Source: health.ucsd.edu Author: Yadira Galindo Singing hymns in church has always brought Cynthia Zamora joy. Today, her once sharp intonation has given way to a raspy voice. But Zamora is thankful that she has a voice at all after spending three months without the ability to utter even one syllable. “I miss going to church and singing with people,” said Zamora. “Although, if I am in the back I'm still singing. I'm just hoping they don't hear what sounds like a 13-year-old pubescent boy back there, because that's how I sound. I know God thinks it's beautiful, so I don't worry about it. I just go on with life.” In 2017, Zamora bit her tongue while sleeping, splitting her tongue nearly in half. She was referred to a specialist when her wound would not heal. They found a 5.4-centimeter tumor that enveloped more than half of her tongue. To save her life, her surgeon, Joseph Califano, MD, delivered grim news: Zamora would have to undergo a glossectomy — the surgical removal of all or part of the tongue. “By the time I saw her she was really having a hard time speaking and swallowing,” said Califano, director of the Head and Neck Cancer Center at UC San Diego Health. “With Cynthia that was a difficult discussion because it was unclear how much tongue we would save and how good the function would be with the remaining tongue that would be preserved.” A multidisciplinary team of experts that included medical oncology, [...]

Carcinoma of the oral tongue in patients younger than 30 years: Comparison with patients older than 60 years

Source: oraloncology.comPublished Online" 07 August 2013.  Summary  Objectives The incidence of oral tongue squamous cell carcinoma is rising in young patients. This study evaluated the clinical, pathological, and prognostic characteristics of oral tongue squamous cell carcinoma in the under-30-year age group. Materials and methods The computerized database of the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery of a tertiary, university-affiliated medical center was searched for all patients with oral tongue squamous cell carcinoma treated by glossectomy with curative intent in 1996–2012. Data were collected by chart review. Results Of the 113 patients identified, 16 (14%) were aged ⩽30years at presentation and 62 (55%) >60years. Mean follow-up time was 30months. Comparison by age group revealed no sex predilection and no differences in histologic grade or rates of advanced T-stage, perineural and vascular invasion, or nodal extracapsular extension. Rates of node-positive disease were 75% in the younger group and 19% in the older group (p<0.001). Kaplan–Meier analysis yielded no between-group difference in disease-free or overall survival. Recurrence was documented in a similar proportion of patients (38% and 29.9%, respectively), but half the recurrences in the younger group were distant versus none in the older group (p=0.01) All younger patients with recurrent disease died within 16months of its appearance compared to 50% 3-year disease-specific survival in the older group. Conclusions Oral tongue squamous cell carcinoma is more advanced at presentation in younger than in older patients, with higher rates of regional metastases and distant failure. Recurrent disease is more aggressive, with a fatality rate of [...]

2013-10-02T15:43:52-07:00October, 2013|Oral Cancer News|

Life After Tongue Cancer, & a Total Glossectomy

Source: UCSF Medical Center Author: Sierra Tzoore   Tongue cancer is uncommon, and it's especially unusual for it to strike a young person who doesn't smoke or drink heavily. Kate Brown was just 32 years old, recently married and beginning a new job, when she learned that a spot on her tongue was stage III tongue cancer. Brown was referred to UCSF Medical Center, where surgeons recommended a drastic treatment that was her best shot at survival: a total glossectomy, or tongue removal, followed by chemotherapy and radiation. Four years later, Brown is cancer-free and, unlike many patients who undergo total glossectomy, able to eat and speak understandably. We asked Brown about her treatment and path to recovery. How did you discover you had tongue cancer? A small sore appeared on my tongue when I had a sore throat. I took antibiotics for the sore throat, but the spot was still there after the sore throat subsided. I then started to have ear pain and the sore got larger. I was prescribed antibiotics again. When my doctor looked in my ear she didn't see any swelling, but the earache became unbearably painful. I'd never been in pain like that. In my heart of hearts, I knew at that point that something was terribly wrong, but I wasn't sure what it was. I decided to see another doctor, who referred me to an ear, nose and throat specialist, Dr. Ivor Emanuel at California Pacific Medical Center. Dr. Emanuel's specialty is allergies but I think [...]

2011-08-22T12:33:47-07:00August, 2011|OCF In The News, Oral Cancer News|
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