Hello ... I am new to this board, and I am a thyroid cancer survivor. However, since my radiation treatment 7+ years ago, I have had persistent sores in my mouth, which never healed. Periodically they were biopsied, and almost two years ago my oral surgeon removed a fair amount of displasia from the inside of my cheek. This never healed. Now I've had another biopsy, and although I have not yet seen the path report, the oral surgeon's office called to have me come in on Monday.

Should this be malignant, where is the best place for treatment in Southwest Florida? For my thyroid cancer I go to Mayo Clinic, in Jacksonville, but it's a six hour drive, and I only need to go there two or three times a year.

Thanks for your help.

On a similar vein, does anyone have suggestions for treatment centers in Ohio? I'm concerned about some spots in my mouth and want to go to the best place possible to follow up.

I don't know about Florida, but if I was in Ohio I would choose the Cleveland Clinic. As to the non healing tissues, you can thank the good ole radiation treatments for this......

Hi, Brians right about the Cleveland clinic in Ohio. My ENT here in Pa. came from the Cleveland clinic and people wait in line to get to him, he is good at all , but considers Cancer his personal enemy!gnelson

nothing against the cleveland clinic.....i was born in raised in that great town, but for treatment in ohio there is also the James Cancer Hospital at the Ohio State University. Dr. Schuller and his team are great and have some very cutting edge treatment options going. depending on where you are in ohio it may be easier to get to columbus.

Anybody know the name of the the most well-respected physician/surgeon at the Cleveland Clinic in this area? I've often heard that the physicians in the larger academic research facilities aren't equal in terms of skill level and competence (i.e. they get the cream of the crop and the bottom of the crop, the very good and good go into private practice). If not, any suggestions on how to gather intelligence on this?

(sorry....i had to post this because i work at Ohio State and had to stick up for my collegues.)

there is often no difference between the skill levels of doctors at academic institutions. i know of quite a few people who were almost killed or permanently maimed by incompetent doctors at the famed cleveland clinic. it doesn't matter under what setting a doctor works....whether they graduated first or last in there class, they all get to be called doctors. some of the best doctors choose to stay at academic hospitals in order to pass on all of their knowledge.

I was actually suggesting that the Cleveland Clinic is an academic research facility so it has some of these problems - I've certainly heard that the Clinic is not perfect, but if you get the right doctor you get world-class care; nothing at all against OSU