Hi Bruno,

Sorry you are here. You have asked some good questions.

[quote=BrunoS] I am almost certain she will have the surgery. She has a doctor's appointment on Friday... I would like to know how urgent is the surgery.[/quote]
This is something you should ask the doctors. Everybody is different and there are a lot of considerations in making this type of decision. Her team of doctors should have consulted with each other prior to her Friday appointment, and should give her their recommendations then as to the time frame that is best.

[quote=BrunoS]How technically demanding is this surgery (glossectomy plus neck lymph node removal) would her survival/cure rate be higher if done at a top rated US cancer center? This may not be an option.[/quote]
You did not mention where your mom is being treated. For oral cancer, being treated by, or going for a second opinion at, a Comprehensive Cancer Center (CCC) can make a difference in outcome. A CCC uses a doctor-team approach and sees hundreds to thousands of OC patients per year, where non-CCCs may see only a few. Here is a link to CCCs listed by state.
Cancer Centers by State

The potential surgery that you described can be demanding, and I'm sure other OCF members can help you with this based on their experiences.

[quote=BrunoS]She stills needs to do a MRI of the neck area, will this decide how many lymph nodes are removed? At the moment the doctors have said all lymph nodes must be removed. Not sure if the MRI results will change that.[/quote]
Her doctors will probably address this on Friday. The MRI is one tool that can be used in planning what needs to be done.

There are other members here that have much more experience with the situation your mom and family are facing. Keep asking questions and you will get a lot of help!

Let us know how the appointment goes tomorrow. Is someone going with your mom to ask questions and take notes? This can be very important, it's hard to remember all the new information. I even taped my appointments, and of course, the doctors were pleased that I did. Reduces frantic phone calls!

My Best,