Welcome to OCF, Nancy! Im glad you found our group. I know its scary being diagnosed with cancer. The unknown always is the scariest. Dont worry, you are among friends here, we have been thru it and will get you thru it too.

For most oral cancer (OC) patients eating becomes a challenge during rads and recovery. Rads affects your sense of taste and ability to swallow. Eat all your favorite foods, desserts too now before rads starts. You need to take in at least 2500 calories and 48-64 oz of water every day.... every single day!!! The better you can do with your intake, the easier it will be to get thru it. During rads you probably will not be able to tolerate drinking alcohol. You may want to talk to your doc about whats ok and what isnt if you plan on drinking alcohol after rads. Many docs advise not to drink after having OC and treatments.

You are being treated at a comprehensive cancer center (CCC). Many of our members have gone there. You have a long drive to get to your treatments. During rads you may be on some meds or as you progress thru your treatments, you may not feel up to driving yourself. Do you have someone to help drive you? You may want to call the American Cancer Society (avail 24/7 so call anytime) and ask about their volunteer driving program. Theres some paperwork to fill out to get enrolled which can take some time. Its a great program made up of cancer patients/survivors and caregivers, Ive done it when I have time. Even if you have someone to drive you, having someone else take a day or 2 a week can be a nice break for your caregiver.

As you tell people about your cancer, you will probably be asked what they can do to help you. Make a list of everyones name and contact info and give it to your caregiver. Tell your friends and relatives when the time comes, you will let them know what they can do. Theres a million small things that can help make this easier for you to get thru. Picking up meds from the pharmacy, walking your dog if you have one, getting your mail, grocery shopping, doing a load of laundry, helping you to keep up with emails, and updating friends and relatives are just a few things that can be a big help.

Im surprised your doc would say your tumor is likely HPV+. Almost all HPV+ OC tumors are located in the base of tongue or tonsil areas. It can happen but its very rare for HPV to cause OC tumors in other locations. Please let us know when you find out. There are quite a few patients who have no known cause. I think its about 7-10% of OC patients/survivors have no known cause. There are so many things that can play a part in why people get cancer so its pretty difficult to figure out when someone isnt a smoker what could be the reason for it. This isnt anything to worry about. You probably have so many things going on that its hard to sleep.

Im sure you are super busy trying to prepare for your treatments to begin. Have you been to your dentist yet? You should have fluoride trays made to wear when your going thru rads. If you havent gone yet, call your dentist right away and get started. Your doc should have ordered a full blood panel done including thyroid (men need testosterone too). This is very important that you get it now to capture what your normal number are. Later after finishing rads you may have thyroid issues like most of us here who have gone thru rads. You cant go backwards and get what your normal numbers should be thats why its so important to get it done prior to starting any treatments. Taking a little thyroid pill every day to regulate your thyroid isnt a big deal.

Im sure Ive only scratched the surface with addressing a few pre-treatment things. Feel free to ask questions. We'll do our best to help you. We have been there and completely understand everything you are going thru. Spend some time reading posts and also on the main OCF site to learn more about OC. An informed patient makes for a strong advocate for themselves.