Hi Morgan,

Glad you are moving forward.

I think one of the reasons folks here keep advising you to get a second opinion, is because you have not said why you are not having surgery as a first treatment option. Please explain why you AREN'T a candidate for surgery.

[quote=AnneO]I guess what confuses me about your diagnosis/plan is that oral tongue cancer usually is more successfully treated with surgery first; it differs from cancer in the throat/tonsil area... Unless your cancer is in a place in your mouth that surgery would be really destructive to your tongue...
If they can't do surgery they will do heavier radiation treatments/chemo.[/quote]
Distance to a CCC should not be a factor in getting a second opinion. A CCC might recommend surgery first!

Maybe you won't need Rad/Chemo treatment (I THINK you said there were no cancerous lymph nodes).

IF you can safely avoid radiation, you will have a better QOL following treatment.

BUT, you will NEVER KNOW if you don't consult an EXPERT in the field. I got a second opinion at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore (3-4 hour drive away), seeing one of the top ENTs in the country.

Getting a second opinion at a CCC does NOT mean you have to be treated there. It is simply a way for YOU to be in CONTROL of your life, and verify that you are comfortable with your decisions.

Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, is the second-ranked CCC for OC in the COUNTRY.

Read this post from Leslie B to another new OCF family member:

[quote=Leslie B]As others have done, I would recommend a second opinion from a top-ranked cancer center...

Whether you choose to be treated locally... or at a center like [Memorial Sloan-Kettering] listed above, it's important to at least get a second opinion from a facility that sees a LOT of this kind of cancer. Assuming the second institution agrees in the diagnosis, that second opinion may concur with what you are hearing from the local docs, or you may receive a different treatment plan. (Davidcpa, for instance, got five opinions -- and five different plans -- before choosing the one from a top-ranked cancer center.) Because this cancer can impact so many functions (speaking, eating, breathing, and so on), you want to make sure to get advice from people who have treated this many, many times.

I'm reminded of a post from early last year by a then-new caregiver whose husband had been diagnosed with cancer by an ENT in New York City. She received much encouragement to get her husband a second opinion from Memorial Sloan-Kettering and wrote this after making an appointment there:

"The ENT guy said his practice (three guys) sees about one case of oral cancer a year.
[color:#FF0000]Sloan sees 3500 [per year]. A bit of a difference. The strong message you guys sent me about where people should go is so important. I hope the word is out there."[/color][/quote]
Check it out. If you can make a ONE-TIME TRIP there for consultation, I feel it would be time well spent. I think Medicare will cover second opinions.

Your present doctors at "Rutland VT's Foley Cancer Center" should be PLEASED that you want a second opinion, and offer any assistance you need in arranging a consult at a CCC. If they are confident in their treatment plan for you, they will welcome verification from another center. If they are hesitant or NOT HELPFUL, then this is a sure sign that you should RUN AWAY to another facility!

Everybody here is on your side. PLEASE take advantage of the collective knowledge this family has to offer! Keep posting!

My best to you!