It's just an impacted wisdom tooth, right?

11.08.07

I get to Dr. Ho's office in Rowland roughly 1pm in the afternoon. Waiting in the small/mid sized waiting room. Evidently Dr. Ho is quite popular for wisdom teeth extractions. So, after a slight wait, first order of business, larger panoramic x-ray of my jaw then to the consult room where I was shown a short video on tooth extractions and out patient surgeries. Keep in mind, I was thinking,"Stupid cyst, you shall be out of me in an hour or two." A couple minutes later the doctor came in with the x-ray film and showed me exactly how large this cyst had grown. He immediately told me,

"Sherman, you have what appears to be an Ameloblastoma, but we won't know for sure until you do a biopsy. that large dark area in the lower left area of your jaw is the growth. It also extends up the side of your jaw. I cannot handle something of this magnitude on my office. I'll have to refer you to UCLA. I have a friend currently in the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery program at UCLA Medical. An Ameloblastoma is a benign tumor derived from a tooth cell. For an Ameloblastoma, the most effective form of treatment is removal of the tumor and the surround 10mm of bone. This is due to the fact that it has been documented that Ameloblastoma cells have been found as far as 8mm away from the main mass. Also, due to the size of your tumor, you'd have to remove the a large portion of your lower jaw."

My response,
"HOLY SHIT...."

Well.. not exactly.. but that was basically what came out... So now.. from "Psh.. I'll be fine.." it was.. "I have a friggin' HUGE tumor in the side of my jaw.." Immediately the doctor shot out a disclaimer to me, "No more contact sports, and/or bar fights." So, I talk to the doctor for a tad bit longer, and try to remember everything to bring the news home... doctor's visit, over.

If you can't see the post correctly or want to leave a comment, click here or goto http://amelo.syangphoto.com