The painstaking process of repairing a tongue for a cancer patient.

This is considered a major challenge for doctors, as they must both ensure the safety of patients' lives and allow them to lead normal lives.

Reshaping the blade after cutting it in half.

Recently, doctors from the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at E Hospital successfully treated and operated on a 70-year-old female patient from Hanoi with late-stage tongue cancer.

Patients with tongue cancer undergo microsurgery.

The tumor measured over 4cm, invading the entire area from the oral mucosa to the entire muscle layer, blood vessels, and surrounding systems of the tongue.

To treat the patient, the doctors chose the best option: surgically removing the entire tumor and related areas, then reconstructing the tongue using a microsurgical flap.

Dr. Nguyen Hong Nhung, Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, E Hospital, said that after removing the tumor, a large defect was left in the tongue and the pelvic floor of the mouth. This defect needs to be reconstructed using a tissue flap with microsurgical vascular anastomosis.

Next, the process of reconstructing the tongue and floor of the mouth for the patient was necessary. Due to the widespread nature of the cancer and the removal of half of the tongue, reconstruction using a local flap was not possible.

Therefore, the surgical team chose to use a skin flap from the right arm to reconstruct the tongue. After the surgery, the patient was able to stop the pain, practice swallowing and speaking, and return to a normal life.

What is microsurgery?

Dr. Nguyen Tan Van, Deputy Head of the Department of Dentistry and Maxillofacial Surgery at E Hospital, shared: Microsurgery is one of the most advanced techniques in reconstructing maxillofacial defects in the world as well as in Vietnam today.

During microsurgery, surgeons use specialized microscopes combined with high-precision medical instruments to repair and preserve even the smallest structures in the body.

Accordingly, doctors will bring vascularized flaps from a distant location to the area with the defect, then connect blood vessels (arteries, veins), nerves, etc., with a diameter of only a few millimeters, helping to restore the defects for the patient.

According to Dr. Van, while in the past many maxillofacial injuries were difficult to treat conservatively and required surgery, advances in microsurgery have now brought about a new level of treatment quality.

According to Dr. Van, for patients with maxillofacial cancer, microsurgery is considered the "gold standard" of treatment.

In surgery, the complete removal and prevention of cancerous tumor growth are crucial to ensuring the patient's survival.

However, surgically removing the tumor completely will leave a very large facial defect, and furthermore, it will affect the patient's ability to eat, speak, breathe, and their appearance.

Restoring both function and aesthetics.

To ensure the patient's functions are restored, doctors must perform reconstructive surgery using free skin and bone flaps taken from other areas of the body such as the legs, arms, abdomen, and back, to reconstruct and repair injuries, helping patients regain both function and aesthetics.

Post-operative care for patients who have undergone tongue grafting surgery.

"Currently, we have implemented the microsurgical flap reconstruction technique to treat many cases of maxillofacial cancers, especially oral cancers."

"This technique yields many positive results, providing highly effective treatment for cancer patients, while also helping with functional, anatomical, aesthetic, and psychological recovery, improving the quality of life for patients," Dr. Nhung further shared.

However, Dr. Van emphasized: This is a difficult technique, requiring a team of highly skilled surgeons, intense concentration, and almost absolute precision during the surgery.

To perform microsurgery, surgeons must manipulate blood vessels, nerves, and very small tissues; this cannot be done with the naked eye and requires the use of a magnifying microscope.

The entire process requires surgeons to be extremely meticulous and flawless. Therefore, microsurgery procedures typically last from 8-10 hours, and can even extend to nearly 20 hours.

According to medical experts, microsurgical techniques now minimize damage to surrounding tissues and improve the accuracy of repairs, resulting in faster recovery times and reduced post-surgical complications for patients.

Source: https://www.baogiaothong.vn/ky-cong-va-luoi-cho-benh-nhan-ung-thu-192240930231325603.htm