Hi Tracy (first one), Sorry that you had to be here but we have really wonderful members who will guide you and help you recover.

You will probably undergo partial glossectomy for tongue and Neck dissection in case any Lymph nodes are affected (would know from CT scan). The current treatment procedures (including surgery) attempt the best to retain function and minimize damage to unaffected areas. You may undergo some reconstructive surgery, if required.

Oral cancer treatment is usually multimodality treatment and doctor may need you to go through surgery and/or radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy. There are lot of members here who have had all of them, my father included. For lateral tongue, from what I have seen, I think the recommended protocol is Surgery first and then followed by Chemo and/or radiotherapy depending on features of tumor and lymph nodes.

Once you have your CT and the report is available, Doctor will be able to plan the Surgery. So when you see them, ask about Clinical Stage and details about surgery. Even if you miss out anything related to recovery, therapies etc., we are there to help you.

I am sure by end of day today you will have sufficient information to arm you for your treatment.