Tongue reconstruction for young man with tongue cancer

At Military Hospital 175, patient D. was examined by doctors, had a biopsy of the lesion, had a submandibular lymph node aspirated, and had an MRI of the head, face, and neck. The patient was diagnosed with left tongue cancer and metastasis to the ipsilateral submandibular lymph node.

On March 20, Master - Doctor Do Van Tu - Department of Maxillofacial Surgery and Reconstructive Surgery, Military Hospital 175 said that patient D. was indicated for wide tumor excision, immediate biopsy (cold section), and ipsilateral neck lymph node dissection. Doctors quickly performed tongue reconstruction using a microsurgical anterior lateral thigh flap.

The surgery lasted 8 hours, with 2 teams performing the surgery in parallel. One team performed the surgery to remove the lesion with biopsy and dissection of the same-side neck lymph nodes. Meanwhile, the second surgical team performed the flap technique to reconstruct the damaged organ.

Patient after tongue flap reconstruction

PHOTO: BVCC

"With the patient's condition, we used an anterior lateral thigh flap and applied the flap thinning technique. During the flap lifting process, we created a thin, soft material that resembles the damaged organ but still ensures good blood supply to the flap. Thanks to that, the patient's tongue was restored well in shape and function," said Dr. Tu.

After surgery, the patient recovered well. The patient's reconstructed tongue had a pink flap, little swelling and bleeding when pricked. The incisions in the neck and thighs healed well. The patient could walk, practice swallowing through the mouth, and tongue function was gradually restored.

According to Dr. Tu, in the treatment of tongue and floor of mouth cancer, the reconstruction of the damaged organ after tumor removal plays an important role. The reconstruction solution helps patients restore their physical appearance, speaking and swallowing functions, which has great significance for the patient's ability to integrate into the community.

"The technique of using free flaps in the reconstruction of tongue and floor of mouth defects after tumor removal in the treatment of tongue and floor of mouth cancer brings many benefits such as providing a shaping material with sufficient size, composition, and flexibility, and microsurgical vascular anastomosis technique providing good blood supply to the flap. Thanks to the development of microsurgery, patients have more reconstructive solutions in the treatment of tongue cancer and other diseases," said the doctor.