Catherine (cbhh) --
Yes, my husband did get a diagnosis of SCC in situ with a small bit superficially invasive.

His dentist noticed a leukoplakia that had appeared between checkups and referred him to an oral surgeon for a biopsy. That came back showing moderate dysplasia, though the lab report noted a possible "skip effect" (meaning that cancer could be lurking in areas that were not taken in the biopsy). Because cancer had not been definitively diagnosed, he was referred to a local ENT (who had been chief ENT resident at the Mayo Clinic) for an excisional biopsy to remove the whole thing.

Once the pathology report for that biopsy came back showing cancer, he started being seen by an ENT cancer specialist at Johns Hopkins, about an hour away. That doctor said no further treatment was needed at that time, but he did keep a very close eye on my husband for the first couple of years. Husband has now reached the point where the doc told him last February that he'd see him in a year. His dentist is very proactive in terms of oral cancer screening, and he does get a VELscope twice a year when he goes for cleanings.

He was very fortunate that the margins were good on the excisional biopsy. I'd second what Catherine (RPCV) said -- if you can get to a top-ranked CCC for a second opinion (apart from MUSC), that might help clarify things. In the US News rankings, Hopkins is #1 for ENT and #4 for cancer, and the doctors there see this every day. Seeing doctors who are very familiar with this disease is critical.