Dear AMK,

Welcome to the OCF site. I'm sorry to hear what your sister is going through, especially at such a young age -- sadly, there are quite a few people here who were caught totally off-guard with this illness in their 20's and 30's.

Is your sister being treated at a major cancer center? This is extremely important, particularly where her cancer has been spreading so aggressively.

Do you know what type of radiation she had? My understanding is that if she had IMRT at the original site, it would not preclude her from having additional radiation at a different site now (there are others on this board with more experience on this who can probably give you a fuller explanation). It would also help us to know the stage of the tumor that was removed, and whether she also had lymph nodes removed at the time.

I'm not sure I understand the chemo option you mentioned. It seems that with most head and neck cancers, chemo alone is not effective, but it is often used in conjunction with radiation to enhance the overall treatment.

I know it can be so overwhelming when you have to confront a disease like this and try to deal realistically with treatment options in a very short time frame. You will find a great deal of support and information here, and I hope it can give your sister some much needed encouragement. Please stay in touch and feel free to come back with more questions.

Cathy