Maxillectomy

Good evening, Dancey, my surgery was the other way around, where i had my lower jaw reconstructed, plus the floor of my mouth, so everything involved skin and bone grafts. Considering what they had to do, the results were great. I know people on here have the same or similar operations to you, and as far as i know, have made a good recovery, sometimes its just a matter of trial and error until they get it right. Treatment and surgery have improved since i had my last operation in 2010, so I hope they manage to make eating and drinking more comfortable for you. Sorry i cannot help you with the obturator, but you could try typing it in the search bar and see if any posts from the past come up. Wishing you all the best, take care.

                                                                          Chris x

Hi Dancey. I had the same op as you in 2019 with a left maxillectomy and radiotherapy and had an obturator. The first obturator I had made after the op was not a really good fit and I had some issues with it around eating and speaking. However the second one was a good fit and did not cause me much trouble. I did find that when I drank some liquid would come down the left side of my nose. I often had my nose run on the left side when I smelled food which seemed to trigger the saliva type response. When I ate I also had some fluid leakage down my nose. It was just something that I had to accept although I went through quite a lot of tissues. Apparently this is a common issue with obturators. I just became used to it after a while. In 2022 I had another bought of jaw cancer and had a right maxillectomy. This time I had the roof of my mouth covered with a graft from my forearm as there was no longer anywhere to attach an obturator. The graft worked well and I am very happy with it. I no longer have any leakage down my nose. If the leakage down your nose is really getting you down the skin graft is an option. It is a big op though and I didn't have any choice although I am very happy with the result. However maybe the first port of call is to see if they can make another obturator that is a better fit. Time does improve things so maybe a wait and see approach for a bit longer. It did take me a while to adjust to the obturator and I did get on fine with it in the end.

Lyn

Hi again Dancey. I forgot to mention that I asked my surgeon why my nose was running so much. He told me that sometimes there are cross wires after the maxillectomy. Normally when you smell food or start to eat your mouth waters. However what happens. is that the cross wires make your nose water instead. Hope I got that right. The other issue is more with the obturator when you are drinking . If there is not a complete seal some of the fluid comes down your nose so they are 2 separate issues. I still do have some nasal issues even after having the graft to cover the roof of my mouth. 

Lyn

Thank you for your reply Chris 

I was offered a skin graft / bone reconstruction but was told that it might not be possible to have teeth fixed to the jaw which that is why I went for the obturator.

Hi Sophie 

Thank you for your reply 

My obturator seems to be a good fit with a good seal, I seem to be having the same effects as you did with the leakage and eve the smell of food or even sometimes just looking at foods it ca happen.

I was originally offered a reconstruction using grafts and the bone from my leg but decided against it as they do make it clear that I may not be able to have teeth attached to the bone. I have just contacted the maxilofacial facial surgeon to see if there is a way forward 

Thanks 

You are welcome Dancey, i did have implants done on my lower jaw so i could have dentures that fitted onto the 4 implants but after about 18 months my body rejected them so they were removed. I was warned this could happen but i had nothing to loose so i went for it. All the best.

                                                         Chris 

Hi Dancey.

With my first maxillectomy I I was offered just an obturator with no skin graft to cover the roof of my mouth or a skin graft  but it would still have been with an obturator and not implants as only my cheekbone was left and no upper jaw to attach implants into on that side and a reconstruction had a high chance of failure.  I went for just the obturator and it did work out quite well for me although it did affect my eating ability. 

The runny nose did improve a bit with time I found although it was always there. However I figured that it was my new normal at that stage so just had to work with it. My second maxillectomy I had the skin graft as nothing left for the obturator to hang onto.Although the runny nose is much improved with the skin graft I still have quite a few issues with my nose being  constantly blocked but also at the same time running a bit when I eat but nothing major. My next new normal so I have got used to it and work with it. It is what it is. 

It does take some time to adjust to a new normal but you will get there. 

Lyn