Hi Susan

what I'd like to know is how can they tell??

My mother has had 3 bouts of cancer - not oral, but still relevant to this thread. Number 1 was breast, followed by the second in the kidney 6 months later. Not related. That is not so suprising but the doozy was when she was diagnosed a second time with breast cancer 12 months after the first one. Still not related. Except for the fact she is one body with 3 different unrelated cancers, her treatment has been very straightforward and she is alive and kicking showing absolutely no signs of damage. Doctors told her a 2nd cancer in the same place happens in about 1% of patients, so you are both definitely special.