Source: taiwanjournal.nat.gov.tw
Author: staff

Traditional oral cancer surgeries involve entering the affected area through the lower lip, causing the patient’s lower lip to be disfigured in some cases. The patient may suffer from strange sensations as well as losing balance on both sides of the lower lip, making it impossible for them to fully purse their lips.

A modified oral cancer surgery technique applied by the Department of Ear, Nose and Throat Medicine at the Dalin Branch of the Buddhist Tzu Chi General Hospital in Chiayi County requires no cutting into the patient’s lower lip, and thus leaves no disfigurement to the upper and lower lips of the patient. This wonderful news is sure to bring a smile to patients.

The Dalin Buddhist Tzu Chi General Hospital says that oral cancer ranks fourth of the 10 most prevalent cancers among males in Taiwan, and the number of patients with this type of cancer is increasing each year. The hospital noted that 50% of the patients who had undergone the traditional surgical method were not able to fully close their lips, making other patients on the surgery list less likely to go through with such treatment. But their faces will be relatively less disfigured if the modified surgical technique is adopted.

Dr. Lee Qing-chi says that the modified surgical technique calls for making a surgical incision under the chin and then excising the tumor from this angle. Cosmetic surgeons will follow through to reconstruct the skin flap in the area, which will leave the upper and lower lips symmetrical with relatively few surgery signs. However, patients with severe mouth fibrosis syndrome or who suffer from mandibular joint ankylosis are not appropriate candidates for the surgery.

Dr. Lee says that the usual oral cancer treatment involves surgery, radiation and chemotherapy. The traditional surgery in this regard requires an incision in the patient’s lower lip to excise the tumor, which can often lead to face disfigurement and mouth twittering in the patients when speaking. In addition, other patients are not able to fully close their upper and lower lips; if the function of the orbicularis oris muscle is damaged, and the patient won’t be able to return to normal even after the muscle is sutured back. Patients will dribble saliva from their mouths when they speak; their faces will change significantly because the upper and lower lips do not fit together after the surgery.