I haven't jumped in for a while..but my experience at MDAnderson was quite different from Emily's mom. I was called within 24 hours of the online referral and was sitting with a team of doctors within a week and a half. Two days of tests and surgery 2 weeks later. I'm glad I took the time. Still the decision is a personal one. I know my original ENT told me waiting on that referral was ill advised as "the cancer would spread rapidly", but that additional 10 days left me with most of my tongue and cancer free. Worth the investment for me.