Cancer survivor whose tongue was removed defies the odds by writing cookbook

Defying expectations

A cancer survivor who was told told she would never eat properly again after having all but 5mm of her tongue removed has defied expectations to write a recipe book, even tasting dishes herself.

Laura Marston, a HR director from Borehamwood in Hertfordshire, noticed she had a sore on her tongue in October 2018 but believed it was due to burning her mouth on a piece of toast.

However, when her sister Eve Macmillan, a restaurant supervisor, saw the the sore blister on her tongue while at a night out she advised her Laura to seek medical help.

Laura went to her doctor who referred her to New Barnet Hospital, London and she was diagnosed with stage 4 tongue cancer on 21 May 2019.

Three days after, Laura was told by a specialist at University College Hospital, London, that she would need her tongue completely removed.

Tracheostomy

They intimated that she would be on a permanent feeding and breathing tube and that she only had a 30 percent chance of making it through.

Laura had 9.5cm of her tongue removed (leaving just 5mm) during an operation at the Royal Marsden Hospital, London on 13 August 2019.

She also had a tracheostomy to help her breathe and skin taken from her left arm to reconstruct her tongue.

Her skin was taken from her abdomen to reconstruct her arm.

After three days in the intensive unit, Laura suddenly began to teach herself how to swallow and speak by introducing liquids into her diet and singing the alphabet every day.

Currently, Laura has defied medical odds by eating normally, talking on the phone with no limitations and has even written a recipe book to help other tongue cancer patients with their recovery.

Laura said:

When they told me I would never be able to speak again, I walked to the station to get home, looked at the tracks and thought I wanted to end it all right there and then.

I couldn't bear the thought of going through it all. But I'm a determined person and I vowed to get my voice back and taste food again.

I love cooking and eating - so I'm thrilled to have been able to put together a recipe book.