John Farnham’s recovery from a life-saving operation to remove a cancerous tumor from his mouth could take more than three months and affect his vocal abilities, a specialist surgeon has said.
On Monday, his family said the singer “remains in stable condition in the ICU” and is “awake and responding well to the care he is receiving.” This came after a 12-hour surgery which involved 26 medical staff and saw doctors remove part of his jaw.
Although doctors were confident the operation would remove all traces of the cancerous tumor, Melbourne ear, nose and throat (ENT) and otolaryngologist Dr Eric Levi said the recovery process from the type of surgery subjected to Farnham could be long and “extremely” painful.
While Dr Levi is not part of Farnham’s team directly and could not comment specifically on his treatment, he told news.com.au he expected the rock legend’s recovery to take about three months, except major complications.
Stream more entertainment news live and on demand with Flash. More than 25 news channels in one place. New to Flash? Try 1 month free. The offer ends on October 31, 2022 >
Painful and difficult road to recovery for Farnham
Speaking generally of Farnham’s operation, Dr. Levi hypothesized that the cancerous legion first detected in his mouth had “invaded the jaw bone.”
Dr Levi, who works at St Vincent’s Public Hospital in Melbourne, said patients with this type of cancer undergo extensive surgery, which is “almost certainly” followed by radiotherapy.
Explaining the multidisciplinary treatment approach, he said Farnham’s medical team would include specialists such as ENT surgeons, plastic surgeons, speech therapists, neurosurgeons, general surgeons, maxillofacial surgeons (specializing in the face and jaw).
“(Because you need to reconstruct the jaw) you usually have to use a piece of bone from somewhere else, probably from the leg, as well as muscles and skin, which have to be torn away from the blood vessels in the neck” . he said
“They would also remove all the lymph nodes in your neck.”
Surgeons may also need to insert a tracheostomy tube into a patient’s windpipe to help with breathing, or include a feeding tube up to the stomach or nose.
Levi said that once Farnham recovers from her marathon surgery, which could take four to six weeks, her lymph nodes will be analyzed for microscopic cancer cells.
Depending on those results, he would then undergo radiation or chemotherapy for about six weeks to make sure the cancerous tissue doesn’t grow back. This might look like daily radiation treatment for five days a week, with additional chemotherapy sessions in between.
The time frame also does not take into account complications that could include infection, bleeding and flap dehiscence, which is when part of the surgical wound begins to open.
Farnham’s voice could be changed forever
As it stands, neither Farnham nor her family have commented on whether the music icon intends to return once she recovers from her surgery, but Dr. Levi warned that Farnham’s voice will “sound different” if she decides to, or can, return to the stage.
“The disease itself is debilitating from a functional standpoint, but treatment will also not be able to restore your previous function,” Dr. Levi said.
“(His doctors) will strive to return and restore as much function as possible, but that’s not always possible.”
This could be the case even if your vocal cords, larynx, and voice box are unaffected by the tumor and treatment. Levi explained that while he will still have a voice, the shape of his mouth and the way his sound resonates through his vocal cords, mouth and nose will be different.
“What makes him different from you and me is the shape of his mouth. Now that the shape of his mouth has changed, the echo and the resonance chamber around the mouth has also changed,” he said. Dr. Levi.
What we know about John Farnham’s diagnosis
Before Farnham’s operation on Tuesday, the musician had only learned of his cancer diagnosis two weeks earlier.
Appearing in TodayGaynor Wheatley, who is the wife of Farnham’s late close friend and manager Glenn Wheatley, revealed that it was the singer’s wife Jill who convinced him to see a doctor.
“I think John has that ‘I’m fine’ guy thing and he was lucky and we have Jill to thank for taking him to the doctor and finding this lesion in his mouth which has now been removed and treaty,” he said. said
Speaking about Farnham’s health, Mrs Wheatley added: “There will be a period of time in hospital recovering from the surgery and ongoing treatment to make sure we have everything.”
Levi said the lesions are one of the first symptoms of mouth cancer. Although sores are not always painful, they can form on the soft palate, hard palate, tongue, cheek or lip and enlarge over time, they are often the first symptom of mouth cancer.
“They can affect the basic functions of the mouth, which includes eating, drinking, speaking, smiling, swallowing, tasting, singing,” he added.
Although they can be mistaken for mouth ulcers, she advises people to see a doctor if they persist for two to four weeks, or if they grow and become more uncomfortable and painful.
In response to Dr Levi’s Twitter thread about head and neck cancers, Australian Dental Association Victoria CEO Professor Matt Hopcraft added that these diseases were also often first detected by dentists and stressed the importance of regular dental checkups.
“Early detection is important,” he tweeted.
“Radiation causes severe dry mouth, which leads to chewing/swallowing problems, but also (increases) the risk of cavities.”
More awareness and support for patients is needed
As Farnham’s legions of fans anxiously await the singer’s recovery, Dr Levi says it is important to recognize and combat the “stigma” associated with mouth and throat cancers.
“When people talk about throat and mouth cancer, people have this image in their mind that it only affects people who have been smokers and drinkers all their lives,” he said.
However, the perception is false and may increase “social isolation” among patients.
“All cancers are bad, but to have cancer in such a prominent place and affect your ability to swallow, speak, smile and your function of taste and smell, that really affects the things that make us human,” she said.
“I think what we can do for these patients is be that social support and connection for them,” Dr. Levi said.
“This is why there is also a high association with depression and social isolation in this patient population.
“As a community I think we should talk about it more, we should demystify it and we should be a social support to help these patients feel connected.”