Hi.
I found my oral cancer very late at stage T3N2M0. I had undergone & completed 50 grad of Radio Therapy as of 19/Sep/08. Now the tumor disappeared, still slowly recovering frm inflammation of mucus membrane due to RT.

Can any one suggest me What is the chance of survival If I skip surgery but continue RT? Had any one at T3N2 - survived (or surviving) without surgery?

First consultation - (MS, McH oncologist )
Doctor advised major surgery in which I will lose
- 2/3rd of tongue
- half of lower Jaw
- most of my ability to speak
- ability to swallow food
- face appearance, etc
80% guarentee for non re-occurance
*** other complications - as im a patient with hypothyroid, and dyslipedemia, silent ischemia, diabetes melitus type II, I might be unconscious for abt 1-2days after surgery

Second consultation - (MERT doctor)
other doctor suggested me to continue Radio Therapy for another 24 Grad (in 12 sitings) & skip surgery as the response is better in RT so far.
but only 40% guarantee for non re-occurance
If re-occured, only chance is salvation surgery. (not sure what is the success percent in the same)

thanks in advance
I posted the same msg in Intro-Myself topic... got some good response, but thought this is right place to discuss...

I can only speak of my own experience. I had no surgery and I was HPV+. I assume you were a tobacco user which a recent study has concluded that HPV+ SCC responds better to conventional Tx which is usually in your case tongue surgery followed by concurrent chemo and radiation with you receiving the max 70 gy. This cancer is very aggressive and that's why most specialists push their patients to get the maximum Tx the first time around. Actually I am a little surprised by you stopping after 50 gy. I have never heard of that technique used before.

davidcpa,

Thx for ur reply. You are true, radiation 70 gy required. But my treatment was planned in such a way...
surgery as primary treatment but as I had hypothyroid and silent ischemia, I couldn't undergo immediate surgery. so alternatively 50 gy radiations was recommended before surgery.

Now im in the recovery period frm RT, but strongly thinking not to go for surgery... and take another 24 gy RT... because of my good response to RT & the primary tumor is completely disappeared (after 50 Gy).

Whats ur opinion abt this...

I am not a doctor just a seasoned survivor so you need to leave the medical decisions up to the experts but here in the U.S. there is a recent trend to shorten the time that they dispense the 70 gy as opposed to spreading the Tx period out with the thinking that the cancer is killed more effectively. Some now are radiated twice a day for a shorter period and some are radiated twice on Fridays only. Most here really do not want their patient to miss any rad Txs so I have no experience with the concept of splitting the rad Tx up as you have described.

I will say that your cancer (I assume it's SCC) is extremely aggressive so whatever you and your doctors decide, do it soon.

I would take the additional radiation to complete the course and then re consult on the surgery by a different surgical doctor. I had all my rads before my surgery, and as a result the original surgery that was planned, was now only a neck dissection. I had no bone invasion, which would be a mitigating factor in radiation being able to control the disease there.