Renowned movie critic Roger Ebert will unveil a new prosthetic jaw crafted for him by a maxillofacial prosthodontist on his latest TV show, "Ebert Presents at the Movies."
Ebert was originally diagnosed with papillary thyroid cancer in 2002 and had the malignant gland removed, according to a story on emaxhealth.com. But the cancer spread to his salivary glands and then to his jaw. After undergoing surgery to remove much of his mandible followed by radiation therapy, Ebert suffered further complications. He eventually required a tracheostomy and completely lost his voice.
David Reisberg, DDS, a maxillofacial prosthodontist at the University of Illinois Medical Center in Chicago, helped create Ebert's new silicone prosthesis. The prosthesis rests on Ebert's shoulder, almost like a collar, covering his lower face and neck, and it is not meant to be worn every day.
In addition, Ebert uses a laptop and special text-to-speech software to communicate. Scottish company CerecProc reconstructed Ebert's voice using archived footage of him from his previous show, "At the Movies."
"I will wear the prosthesis on the new television show," he wrote January 19 in his journal in the Chicago Sun Times. "That's not to fool anyone, because my appearance is widely known. It will be used in a medium shot of me working in my office, and will be a pleasant reminder of the person I was for 64 years."
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