Why February Is the Best Time to Schedule Your Mammogram
Cancer Rehab Group
February 12, 2026
Specialized rehabilitation for jaw stiffness from head and neck cancer treatment.
Specialized care that understands your unique challenges
Cancer and its treatment can significantly impact your jaw, causing trismus, restricted jaw opening that leads to pain, limited mobility, and difficulty eating or speaking. Whether from radiation to the head and neck, chemotherapy side effects, oral surgeries, or the physical stress of treatment, trismus can diminish your quality of life.
Our ARK-J certified oncology rehabilitation specialists understand the connection between cancer and jaw restriction. We don’t just treat jaw pain; we address the root causes related to your cancer journey, providing targeted therapy that works alongside your oncology care.
Unlike general jaw treatment, our approach is designed specifically for cancer patients and survivors. We consider your medical history, current treatment protocols, radiation exposure, medication side effects, and overall health status to create a safe, effective rehabilitation plan that supports your recovery without interfering with your cancer care.
From the moment you’re diagnosed through survivorship, we provide comprehensive trismus management. We help prevent jaw restriction before it starts, reduce pain and restore mobility during treatment, and rebuild strength and function after treatment ends, using proven, non-invasive therapies tailored to your specific stage in the cancer journey.
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Myofunctional therapy retrains the muscles of your jaw, face, mouth, and throat to restore proper function and reduce trismus symptoms. For cancer patients, radiation therapy, surgery, and scar tissue can disrupt normal muscle patterns, leading to compensation, tension, and restricted jaw opening.
We use specialized exercises to improve jaw mobility, reduce muscle tension, correct tongue posture, and restore proper swallowing patterns. This therapy is especially beneficial for those who have undergone head and neck radiation or surgery, helping to prevent long-term complications like trismus (locked jaw).
Treatment is gentle, progressive, and tailored to your current abilities. We teach you jaw-opening exercises you can practice at home to maintain progress between sessions, giving you control over your recovery and helping you rebuild confidence in everyday activities like eating, speaking, and yawning.
Oncology-specialized physical therapy combines manual techniques with therapeutic exercises to address cancer-related trismus. Our ARK-J certified therapists understand how radiation fibrosis affects the pterygoid, masseter, and temporalis muscles, the key muscles that control jaw opening.
Manual therapy can improve your mouth opening by 4-6mm in just one session, with even greater improvements through continued treatment. We use hands-on techniques to release tight tissues, reduce pain, and restore jaw mobility that radiation or surgery has limited.
Your personalized treatment plan considers your radiation exposure, surgical history, and current treatment stage to ensure safe, effective care. We work within your cancer care timeline, helping you maintain jaw function during treatment and rebuild strength during recovery.
Osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) takes a whole-body approach to trismus rehabilitation, recognizing that jaw restriction often involves the neck, shoulders, and surrounding structures affected by cancer treatment.
For head and neck cancer survivors, OMT addresses not just the jaw joint but also fascial restrictions, lymphatic drainage issues, and postural changes that develop during radiation or surgery. This gentle, hands-on technique helps release deep tissue restrictions that exercises alone may not reach.
Our osteopathic approach is particularly effective for patients experiencing radiation fibrosis, the stiffening of tissues that makes trismus so challenging to treat. By improving tissue mobility throughout the head, neck, and jaw region, OMT supports better outcomes when combined with exercise and manual therapy.
With specialized training in oncology rehabilitation and trismus, our team understands how cancer treatment uniquely affects jaw opening, surrounding muscles, and your ability to eat, speak, and live comfortably.
This isn't general jaw treatment. These are cancer rehab specialists with ARK-J certification who recognize the connection between radiation fibrosis, chemotherapy side effects, surgical changes, and restricted jaw opening, and have the expertise to provide safe, effective relief at every stage of your cancer journey.
Radiation to the head and neck can damage jaw muscles and cause radiation fibrosis, scar tissue that limits movement and causes restricted jaw opening. Chemotherapy can lead to muscle weakness, inflammation, and stress-related clenching. Surgeries involving the mouth, throat, or neck can alter jaw mechanics and create scar tissue.
Additionally, the physical stress of cancer treatment, medication side effects, and changes in posture or breathing patterns can all contribute to trismus, restricted jaw opening that makes eating, speaking, and oral care difficult.
As early as possible ideally before or during cancer treatment. Starting jaw opening exercises early can reduce your risk of developing trismus by up to 58%. If you've already completed treatment, it's not too late, rehabilitation can still improve mouth opening and function, though early intervention is easier than treating established restriction.
Talk to your oncology team about getting an assessment if you notice any jaw tightness, difficulty opening your mouth wide, or can't fit three fingers vertically between your teeth (less than 40mm opening).
Yes, and it's often the best time to start. Our ARK-J certified specialists understand the safety considerations for working with patients during active cancer treatment.
We coordinate with your oncology team to ensure rehabilitation supports your recovery without interfering with treatment protocols.
Gentle jaw exercises and manual therapy during treatment can help prevent trismus from developing rather than trying to reverse it later. We modify techniques based on your current treatment phase, side effects, and energy levels.
No, when performed by oncology-specialized clinicians. This is why ARK-J certification matters. Our specialists are trained to understand radiation timing, tissue fragility, lymphedema risk, and treatment protocols specific to cancer care.
We work alongside your cancer treatment, not against it. Your rehabilitation plan is designed to support your recovery while respecting the medical considerations unique to oncology patients. We communicate with your care team to ensure coordinated, safe treatment.
It varies based on severity and timing. If you start preventive exercises before or during cancer treatment, you may only need a few sessions to learn proper techniques and establish a home program.
If treating established trismus, most patients see meaningful improvement in 4-8 weeks with consistent therapy and home exercises.
Research shows manual therapy can improve jaw opening by 4-6mm even in a single session, with continued improvement through serial treatment. Your ARK-J certified clinician will create a personalized timeline based on your specific situation, treatment history, and goals.
Our approach supports you at every stage, helping prevent jaw restriction, manage symptoms during treatment, and restore full function after recovery.
Prehabilitation (Before Treatment)
Trismus rehabilitation can begin at anytime during your cancer treatment starts. This proactive phase, called prehabilitation, focuses on strengthening your jaw muscles, improving mobility, and teaching exercises to prevent trismus (locked jaw). Research shows that patients who start jaw therapy early experience less pain, maintain better function during treatment, and recover faster with fewer long-term complications. Early intervention can reduce trismus risk by up to 58%.
Rehabilitation (During Treatment)
As you move through active cancer treatment, our ARK-J certified team provides ongoing support to manage trismus symptoms like jaw pain, stiffness, difficulty chewing, clicking or popping, and muscle tension. Therapy sessions are tailored to your treatment schedule and adapted to how your body is responding. We work closely with your oncology team to ensure care is safe, coordinated, and aligned with your overall treatment goals while helping you maintain jaw function when it matters most.
Recovery & Survivorship (Posttreatment)
Once your cancer treatment ends, our work continues. Many patients experience long-term or delayed trismus effects, such as limited jaw opening, scar tissue restrictions, chronic pain, or difficulty eating certain foods. Our therapists help you rebuild strength, restore full range of motion, and confidently transition back to normal activities. This phase is focused on lasting recovery, addressing residual radiation fibrosis effects, and giving you strategies to maintain jaw health for life.
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