"I lost my tongue to cancer so had new one made from my arm - it has a tattoo"

A woman who lost her tongue to cancer had it reconstructed with flesh from her left arm - and has a tattoo on it.

Jennifer Alexander, 52, was 37 when she was first diagnosed with stage one tongue cancer.

For over a decade before that she had a recurring leukoplakia - a painful white patch on her tongue caused by HPV.

But in August 2009, she developed a blueberry-sized tumour, and rushed to a dentist where she was given a biopsy.

After undergoing surgery on August 21, 2009 to remove the tumour, the cancer returned twice - in October 2017 and October 2019.