RLM,

I was diagnosed with SCC (stage 2) on my tongue 3 months ago. I went through a similar process as you. My doctor, part of the ENT team at the Huntsman Cancer Hospital, came highly recommended by the oral surgeon who diagnosed my cancer. The oral surgeon managed to get me an appointment with my surgeon the day after the biopsy came back. It was so reassuring not to have to wait.

Anyway, I felt completely comfortable with my surgeon from the get go. Everyone I talked to from the oral surgeon to the office staff and nurses said that he was "the best". I had a PET/CT scan to check for any spread. After that he laid out his plan for my treatment and I was scheduled for surgery. He explained exactly what was going to happen and why. I had a partial glossectomy and a neck dissection. My margins came back clean as did the lymph nodes.

My surgery couldn't have gone better. It was long--7 or 8 hours, but I had no complications. As he was trained in plastic surgery as well, I had minimal scarring and some great reconstructive work on my tongue. I've said before on the site, you can't tell I had a 3 cm piece of my tongue removed from just seeing or talking to me. I can't get over how well things went and how happy I am with the results.

It sounds to me like you've done your research and are making an informed decision. If you feel good about your doctor then I'd go with that. I did and I'm glad of it.

--Aimee