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Monday, May 7, 2012

Tongue Cancer Surgery - 4 Years Ago!!




(Linking this post to With a Grateful Prayer and a Thankful Heart)
 
 Today is a very emotional day for me. It has been exactly 4 years since I had tongue cancer surgery. It really doesn't seem possible at times. If you would like to read about my surgery, click the link below, and then arrow down to the first few posts for May. My daughter, Emily, did an excellent (Amazing) job of keeping everyone up to date all through my 12 hour surgery.

May 2008 Archives

  I got all teary-eyed just rereading all of that. Mostly from reading all of the sweet messages that people wrote, and especially from our precious friend, Jay Dawn, that left us in Feb. She was and has always been such a big support to our family. Words just can't describe the emptiness I still feel about her passing. 

 With that being said, I hope to again make people aware just how important it is to use good dental hygiene, and to get your mouth checked regularly. Even the smallest place can turn into cancer.

 I was very lucky that mine was confined to my tongue. Half of my tongue is now muscle from my left arm. Amazing? Right! 

 If you read that part of my blog, you will see that on the 9th day I was talking! Amazing? Right! Extremely amazing! 
 I also had two Amazing doctors - Dr. Ghali and Dr. Kim! 

  My family (husband-Clay, son-Cody, daughter-Emily, and niece, Robin) was also Amazing through this whole ordeal - and believe me, it was an ordeal! This was the most helpless I've ever been in my life. ICU was a nightmare for me as I couldn't sleep, and I couldn't talk, and of course, no one was allowed to stay in there with me. I won't go into details, but it was such a relief to get to a room so someone could stay with me to be my voice. I used a dry erase board, but I was so weak that it was hard to write plainly what I needed or wanted. 

 I found this board a few weeks ago stuck behind my dresser. These were some of the last messages on it. I don't think they went together, but I just had to laugh out loud. 
 What is funny is that my hubby wrote the last sentence! Hello, I could hear! Just couldn't talk!
 I sincerely hope that you will pass this information along. If you are a smoker, then your chances of getting tongue/mouth cancer is greatly increased. I was in the 4 percentile! My doctors said they do this surgery on someone nearly every week. I had never even heard of this surgery until it happened to me. 

 Sadly, we had a friend that had the same surgery a couple of years ago, but she lost her battle. She was in stage 4 when they found it. 

 Again, let me say how very lucky and blessed I was that my dentist sent me on to be checked by an oral surgeon, and then to Dr. Ghali. I was also very, very blessed that I didn't have to take chemo or radiation!! 
  So I leave you with the first verse of this song. I am truly Amazed and eternally grateful that I am here to tell you MY story!

I stand Amazed in the presence 
 of Jesus the Nazarene, 
 and wonder how he could love me, 
 a sinner, condemned, unclean. 

 How marvelous! How wonderful! 
 And my song shall ever be:
 How marvelous! How wonderful 
 is my Savior's love for me! 

14 comments:

Rosieq said...

Thank you , Shirley, for posting the reminder. I always felt very comfortable with my dentist and his little cancer exam, but after the last time I was in, I'm not too sure. I've had a little clustering of veins in my mouth forever. He was was surprised to see my 'tattoo' when I was in for my checkup in March. Telling me what it was and was perfectly normal. I did ask him if he had been aware of it before... Nope he hadn't. So what kind of cursory check had he been doing.

And, now I wonder what are the telling signs of oral cancer.

DeeDee said...

I am so glad you are here with us.. and happy to tell ya Congrats on 4 years... and so glad you are my freind.... Hugs Miss Shirley... we luvs you lots...

Eat To Live said...

Oh Shirley... I am so happy that the doctors can do such amazing surgery today. I often think about how our lives would be if thing were not so medically advanced today.

You wouldn't be able to talk very well and I wouldn't be able to walk.

Mosaic Magpie said...

A wonderful milestone to celebrate! It is such a scary thing to hear those words, "You have cancer." I am glad we both are on the other side of those words and can look back with praise and thanks to the One that helped us through.
Deb

Jan M said...

We are all grateful for your healing, and celebrate this anniversary with you. Prayers for good health always!

Rettabug said...

What a great reminder to all of us, Shirley! I am so happy that you've done so well all these years & I'm grateful that you spread the word every year, too.

Hugs,
Rett

Why do I have the sudden urge to go brush & floss????? LOL

Anonymous said...

Amazing what you've been through, amazing Savior we have. I'd like to invite you to post this to "With a Thankful Heart"'s blog where she has a linky party every Saturday night/Sunday for posts like these. Hugs ~ Mary

PS It might be "With a Grateful Heart" not sure which ...

GratefulPrayerThankfulHeart said...

Hi Shirley, What an amazing story. I am so happy you shared this on Think on These Things and to stop by to meet you!

Kindly, Lorraine

Dimple said...

He is wonderful to us, although we can't possibly deserve it. I am thankful you have lived to sing his praises!

Unknown said...

Our God saves, heals, and restores. Thank you for sharing this part of your journey.

Mrs Bix 10 said...

I am so grateful that you got through this. I love you so much, you are my soul sister. I also love that Clay wrote to you instead of talked to you on that board, it made me laugh out loud. God is good. I thank him for you.

Unknown said...

congratulations on 4 years. I just had tongue surgery for cancer dec,2 2015. I have some recovery questions if you are willing to answer as doctors can only speculate because they can't feel it. I've looked everywhere online and haven't found any of my specific answers. did you feel any neck muscle type pain after surgery? Or any weird sensations that worried you after healing?

Unknown said...

I mean 8 years sorry

ShirleyC said...

Rian, I hope you come back to read my comment. I can't email you because you are listed as a no-reply blogger.
Email me @ clarkclay@bellsouth.net.