Reassessment and establishment of new treatment approaches for maxillofacial defects are required for improving maxillofacial prosthetic treatment. Maxillectomy patients have functional disorders of mastication, swallowing, speech, and also may have suffered social rejection because of their handicapped appearance. Team management of maxillectomy patients is the standard approach, so we need to construct and practice a maxillofacial rehabilitation system which includes all kinds of related fields, including co-medical staff for mental or social support. However, cooperation between surgery and maxillofacial prosthetic treatment is not sufficient at present. Tohoku University Hospital has conducted both clinical practice and research for all related departments of Tohoku University since 2009. Special treatment teams of medical and dental boundary regions, such as the craniofacial center, the head and neck surgical team, and the swallowing rehabilitation team, have been formed with the help of medical and dental departments. This article describes a new multidisciplinary approach for the treatment for maxillectomy patients based on the experience of cooperation at Tohoku University Hospital.
