1. British Man Battling Advanced Mouth Cancer
2. Troubling Diagnosis in Europe
3. Gratitude for Exceptional Care
4. Delayed Diagnosis
5. Complex Surgery
6. Raising Awareness
7. Symptoms of Mouth Cancer
8. Other symptoms include:
9. A lump or swelling in your mouth or on your lips

British Man Battling Advanced Mouth Cancer

When David Barwell, a British ex-patriot, was diagnosed with advanced mouth cancer, he feared he would soon lose the ability to speak and eat independently. Surgeons were forced to remove a plum-sized tumor from Barwell's throat, leaving him without a tongue and the floor of his mouth. However, doctors were able to use skin and blood vessels from his arm to reconstruct his mouth and perform a lingual flap reconstruction. The entire restoration process took 15 hours; David can now eat and drink again. His wife, 67-year-old Barbara, has praised the "miracle workers" at the National Health Service (NHS) who performed the surgery and remain hopeful that Barwell will regain his speech.

Troubling Diagnosis in Europe

The British national had been living in a camper van in Poland when he was given the devastating diagnosis. He returned to the UK where he received life-changing treatment. Wife Barbara, who has been with David for 28 years, said: "The doctors have been absolutely amazing. After 15 hours of operating on David's life and his mouth, Mr. McVicar rang me up personally to tell me he'd done a great job."

"I just couldn't believe it. I've never known anything like it in all my life in all the time I've lived in Europe." Barbara, who grew up in Poland but moved to Nottingham in the 1980s for her studies, added: "We had plans for our business and our family, and now things have changed."

"We just want to get to a point where we can start our new life, start afresh, which we will do. It's a different life now, but we hope that this awful mouth cancer has gone and it's not going to return."

Gratitude for Exceptional Care

"Normally, people buy cards for staff and I'll do that, but the team who treated my husband were so wonderful, I just had to go that extra mile and say thank you. The team were just brilliant. There was such an atmosphere of hope and kindness."

"Every day David makes me a little note saying he loves me and thanks me for being so devoted to him. We are so happy together and I can't thank those staff enough."

Barwell is currently fed through a tube directly into his stomach and uses a suction tube to control his saliva. He still cannot speak but has been able to express his gratitude to the Nottingham hospital. The British man's thank you note reads: "I am so grateful for your [Mr. McVicar] help and support during this awful illness. The treatment I have received has been first class."

Delayed Diagnosis

David Barwell, who owns a packaging firm, first became ill in October 2014. However, doctors in Spain and Poland, where the couple had been living for the past ten years, misdiagnosed him. Barwell was treated for an infection and given antibiotics.

Finally, in March 2015, after losing 56 pounds in three months, Barwell was diagnosed with stage four mouth cancer. The advanced disease had spread to muscles, bone, and skin near his mouth. Doctors in Poland discharged Barwell and he drove his camper van back to Nottingham.

Complex Surgery

Iain McVicar, a consultant maxillofacial surgeon at Nottingham University Hospitals, said: "The fact he was based in Poland did complicate things. Six to eight months earlier, it might have been a less challenging procedure."

However, any later and the tumor would have been so large that Barwell would have had no chance of survival.

McVicar added: "If you wake up after this surgery, you should be grateful to be alive because it's a life-threatening operation."

Barwell's body has responded well to the procedure, and he is making a good recovery. However, the patient likely faces further challenges in the future.

Iain McVicar said: "This is only part one of the treatment. He will probably need radiotherapy. That is quite a big challenge. He's had a very major operation and at the moment Mr. Barwell is out of the woods. I hope we have got the cancer out."

The consultant surgeon is also hopeful that Mr. Barwell will regain his speech with further help from therapists.

Raising Awareness

Barwell's family and hospital staff believe the public needs to be more aware of changes in their mouths and be more proactive in seeking medical help from doctors or dentists.

Barbara said: "I want people to be more assertive and not sit back and take antibiotics and ignore symptoms. If you've got problems with your mouth, you've got to go to the doctor. They need to tell the doctor what's wrong and get some help."

Agreeing, Iain McVicar added: "If someone has got 'something' wrong with their mouth that lasts for more than two weeks, they should get it checked."

Symptoms of Mouth Cancer

The mouth includes the lips, front two-thirds of the tongue, upper and lower gums, and inner surfaces of the cheeks and lips. It also includes the floor of the mouth, the area under the tongue, the palate, and the area where the wisdom teeth are.

The most common symptom of mouth cancer is an ulcer or sore in your mouth or on your lip that does not heal.

Other symptoms include:

A white (leukoplakia) or red (erythroplakia) patch in your mouth that does not go away

A lump or swelling in your mouth or on your lips

Difficulty or pain when chewing, swallowing, or speaking
Bleeding or numbness in your mouth
Bad breath (halitosis)
Loose teeth or ill-fitting dentures
A lump or swelling in your neck
Significant weight loss in a short space of time

All of these symptoms can be caused by other conditions, but it is important to get them checked by your doctor or dentist.

Strong-spirit