As others have done, I would recommend a second opinion from a top-ranked cancer center -- I gather you're in northern Virginia (based on the referral to Lake Manassas), so you're not far from either Johns Hopkins (where my husband was seen, as was RPCV -- and in the most recent US News rankings it's rated #1 for ENT and #4 for cancer) or Georgetown, where Charm2017 was treated. If you are closer to central Virginia, there's the UVa Cancer Center in Charlottesville or Massey Cancer Center at VCU in Richmond.

All of these are National Cancer Institute-designated centers (meaning they are at the cutting edge of cancer research). Hopkins is also a member of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, an alliance of 21 leading centers across the U.S. that together develop the annual treatment protocols that represent the state of the art in fighting this disease.

Whether you choose to be treated locally (at Lake Manassas or similar) or at a center like those listed above, it's important to at least get a second opinion from a facility that sees a LOT of this kind of cancer. Assuming the second institution agrees in the diagnosis, that second opinion may concur with what you are hearing from the local docs, or you may receive a different treatment plan. (Davidcpa, for instance, got five opinions -- and five different plans -- before choosing the one from a top-ranked cancer center.) Because this cancer can impact so many functions (speaking, eating, breathing, and so on), you want to make sure to get advice from people who have treated this many, many times.

I'm reminded of a post from early last year by a then-new caregiver whose husband had been diagnosed with cancer by an ENT in New York City. She received much encouragement to get her husband a second opinion from Memorial Sloan-Kettering and wrote this after making an appointment there:

[quote=SusanW]The ENT guy said his practice (three guys) sees about one case of oral cancer a year. Sloan sees 3500. A bit of a difference. The strong message you guys sent me about where people should go is so important. I hope the word is out there.[/quote]