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Update: The surgery went very well on the 29th. One large tumor (a mucocele) was removed completely intact from inside my lower lip, and two small lumps were removed near it. It was found to be benign, as expected. Recovery was very quick, the surgeon was surprised how well my mouth had healed up in just the first week. There is minimal permanent numbness in the area - no major nerves were cut during the operation. I was able to play for about 30 minutes tonight and should be better than ever by the end of the week. It is really nice to play without a large lump in my mouth!
NEVER underestimate the power of prayer.

I'm Baaack!

P.S. At least I could still post to TubeNet during my recovery period.

----Original Post-Nov 10-----
Well finally had my appt with the oral surgeon today. Not a blood blister or a cyst, as previously believed. They say that a salivary or mucus gland inside my mouth got clogged and enflamed. That whole section of soft tissue inside my lip has to come out (it is inside my lower lip, near one of the "canine" teeth and about half an inch down, slightly past where any mouthpiece would contact.) They say it will probably not go away on its own, since I have had to lance it about 5 times already. They also say that I will loose any where from a little to a lot of the feeling in my lower lip, as some nerves will be cut during this operation. A routine biopsy will also be performed after it is removed. I have scheduled the operation in a little over a month, hoping to learn more and perhaps find a better alternative in the meantime, plus getting most holiday gigs out of the way.

Anyone ever have one of these before or know anything about it? This is a potential career-ender, and I want to learn as much as I can.

BTW, mouthpiece pressure is a NON ISSUE, as this is not an area of my face that contacts the mouthpiece, so I do not need any additional well meaning advice on that topic.

Marty, I'd get a second opinion as a matter of course.

With a lifetime of canker sores, I've had quite a few episodes of plugged salivary glands that required lancing (and a few that I just haven't bothered with because of their location). The last annoying one I had developed as a hard lump that kept recurring for 2 or 3 years on my lower lip. Eventually, instead of worrying it, I just left it alone for a year and then had it lanced and it never returned.

Marty,

Let me begin by saying I am a tubist, not a doctor. However, my wife is a dentist and one of our best friends is an oral surgeon. Not only would I encourage you to seek another opinion (or two), but I would suggest that the most important aspect of your situation would be to find the reason for the gland clogging in the first place. This can be a recurring problem, as you well know, and nothing, in my opinion, would be worse than to have the procedure, lose some feeling, and have another one appear. What exactly did they call it? Was it classified as a mucocele, a duct cyst, or maybe a salivary stone? If you weren't presented with an exact diagnosis, you should seek that out. I can tell you that according to Oral & Maxillofacial Pathology (Neville, Damm, Allen & Bouquot) most presentations do have a recommended removal of the specific area, some recommending the removal of salivary glands that may feed into the location in question, with the exceptionn of salivary stones, for which the authors recommend massaging the area to work the stone(s) toward the duct. Again, I am not a doctor. I'll contact our oral surgeon friend and see what I can find out. Years ago I had a problem surface on my lower lip. The suggested course of action was removal of the blood vessel in question. No guarantee was could be made as to the extent of nerve damage, and what percentage of that, if any, might return to normalcy. In the long run, I decided the problem was far outweighed by the potential for damage and that surgery would wait until such time it was absolutely necessary. Again, endeavor to find the cause of the problem, if at all possible.

I discussed your situation with my wife. She said it sounded like (and, of course, an exact diagnosis is difficult over TubeNet ) a mucocele (mu-ko-seel), the cause of which is usually some sort of trauma (possibly but not specifically a hit, bump, bite, etc.). They can be, but aren't necessarily, recurring, tending to require some such aforementioned instigation. So having the surgery may take care of the specific locale, but provides no guarantee that you won't have another. If it subsides on its own, which it sounded like it might be, that may be the best course. But certainly seek another opinion and non-surgucal alternatives.
Best wishes for a speedy recovery.

Yeah, that sounds like it could be right, a mucocele. I still believe that it was originally caused by accidentally biting myself in that area, since it was right near the point of the incisor. The thing is a nuisance, but its the consequences of the surgery that scare me a lot more. I am trusting that it will be taken care of and not need to be chopped out.

Well, my surgery is a week from today. I won't be able to play for a couple of weeks afterwards. Hopefully too many nerves won't be cut and the permanent numbness will be minimal and not significantly impair my playing. I am already scheduling things 3 weeks after. I plan on coming back with a vengance!
If you see 3 tubas and a trombone up for sale in February, then you know otherwise.

MartyNeilan wrote:Update: The surgery went very well on the 29th ... There is minimal permanent numbness in the area - no major nerves were cut during the operation. I was able to play for about 30 minutes tonight and should be better than ever by the end of the week. It is really nice to play without a large lump in my mouth!

Very glad (and relieved) that it went well!

MartyNeilan wrote:NEVER underestimate the power of prayer.

Fantastic news Marty! Yes, prayer is the greatest power we have as humans. Welcome back. Now it's time to rock and roll.