Some light at the end of the ORN tunnel?

I had an appointment this week with the oral surgeon who did the two debridements and showed him the trophy shard that popped out of my jaw on Christmas day.  He said it was one of the largest he'd ever seen, and that it was probably the main source of the pain and swelling I've experienced for well over a year.  As always happens when one of the shards comes out, that area feels a lot better and the swelling has gone way down.

The best news from him was that he sees good evidence that the area is starting to heal, even if ever so slowly.  Now that the trophy shard is out, the healing should accelerate--so I don't have to see him for 6 months.  What should happen next is that the new gum tissue will get thicker and stronger and build back up.  It won't ever build up to be even with the adjacent areas, but the size of the crater in my jawline will get smaller and smaller as the gum tissue grows back.

The doctor told me that I have about 50% of my jaw bone left in that spot, but he thinks that the remaining  bone is very strong.  There will always be the risk of a fracture to that area, but as long as I don't chew any ice cubes, open beer bottles with my teeth, walk into any doors, or get punched by Terry, I should be OK.

So, three years after it started, this could be the light at the end of the ORN tunnel.  And, what a long, strange tunnel it's been.  At one point I was sure that I was heading towards a jaw replacement, so this a huge relief.

Coming up next will be my annual scan, in April.  If that is clean, I will be four years in remission, with one year left before I would be declared cured of this cancer. 

Of course, all of this good news comes with the realization that I could still have more side effects and/or get a different kind of cancer down the road--but that is on my mind less and less as each day goes by.  I'm thankful for where I am, for how much of my life I've gotten back, and for all the love and support and Good Vibes that Terry and I have received from family, friends and people we don't even know.  Terry did a little investigative work and learned that this blog has been viewed more than 30,000 times since it started in February of 2009.  Probably 10,000 of those views were by Randy Varley--but that still leaves a pretty large number left.

I will continue to post periodically, so don't stay away too long after this good news.  We are monitoring Winnie's progress (her cancer was confirmed with biopsy--no word yet about her treatment plan), and learned just the other day that the brother of one of Terry's best friends has the same cancer I did and will start his treatments soon.  Never a day off in Cancer World, even on days when some good news happens.

Mike

ORN Update and Need More Good Vibes for Winnie

It's been a while since my last post, which generally means that No news is good news.  My pain level and swelling increased significantly right after the last post on December 22--to the point that I told Terry it might be time to head to the ER for some stronger pain meds.  Then on Christmas day, a huge chunk of dead bone came out of my jaw, and things started to get better right away.  Until then, the ORN bone shards were the size of a grain of rice.  This sucker measured in at three-quarters of an inch long and about a quarter of an inch wide! Picture a paper clip that size and thickness, and you have an idea. It just popped out while I was using a toothpick to clean some food out of that area, and it scared the shit out of me when I first saw it--thinking that the rest of my jaw bone was coming out too.

But, every time one of the shards comes out, the irritation to that area stops, and the pain and swelling go down.  Since then I've been able to gradually reduce my pain meds, to the point that I am now opioid-free for the first time in over a year.

I have an appointment with my oral surgeon next week, and can't wait to show him my "trophy shard" to see if he's ever seen one that large.

I  still have a large crater in the lower left part of my jaw, but hopefully that area can really start to heal for good now.

We recently got word that our friend, Winnie's, biopsy did not go well.  Even before the specimen was sent to the lab, her doc said she was 99.9% sure it was cancer--again.  Her cancer is extremely rare--with fewer than 400 recorded cases EVER.  It is so rare that they don't have any real knowledge of  how to treat it.  We'll know more in the coming weeks, but please send her some Good Vibes when she comes to mind for you.  We are very afraid of what Winnie and her family are looking at with this thing.

Mike