 Patient Advocate (old timer, 2000 posts)
Joined: Nov 2002 Posts: 3,552 | I was told pretty much the same thing, although I had tonsil cancer. I opted for radiation & chemo and I have had a "complete response" to the treatment. It wasn't easy.
The surgery option would have caused major quality of life issues and my team felt that my morbidity would be improved without the surgery (which would have been 14 hours on the table).
Tongue cancers are tougher and more aggressive then tonsil cancer. I believe that the NCCN Oncology Practice Guidelines still put radiation, with concurrent chemotherapy, as the first choice for treating tongue cancer. You may double check this on the resources section of the OCF site.
ps I am also a UCSF patient, at least that's where I received my RT.
Last edited by Gary; 11-07-2011 09:23 PM.
Gary Allsebrook
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Dx 11/22/02, SCC, 6 x 3 cm Polypoid tumor, rt tonsil, Stage III/IVA, T3N0M0 G1/2
Tx 1/28/03 - 3/19/03, Cisplatin ct x2, IMRT, bilateral, with boost, x35(69.96Gy)
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"You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes" (James 4:14 NIV)
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