Hi and welcome. It's great that you have sought support and information. This is a terrifying time for you, your husband, and loved ones. I'm sorry this is happening to you at all. If the biopsy comes back positive, ChristineB can give you a link to all of the CCCs in the country (hospitals that specialize in CA treatment). HOPEFULLY, YOU WON'T HAVE TO DO ALL OF THIS, BUT JUST IN CASE...

Get all of your ducks in a row with medical records, test results, slides from pathology, etc. and get to a CCC. Don't mess around. You'll need an appointment immediately for a consult with a specialist. My surgical oncologist is an otolaryngologist (ENT) who is a head and neck cancer specialist. Once you consult with said specialist, a whole multidisciplinary team will get the ball rolling with a treatment plan. This is what they do...and they are good at it. Your head will spin, but they will hold your hand each step of the way. Get yourself a big 5-subject notebook and make it your cancer bible. Take it with you to every appointment, have it handy for every phone call, and write down every question/concern you have as soon as you can. Otherwise, all of the information will overwhelm you and you will have a hard time remembering. I used the divided sections to separate the different specialties and put tabs in each section. It might be a little much for some, but for me, it was the only thing that made me feel like I had any control over what was happening.

The last thing I want to do is overwhelm you. Like I said, hopefully I'm typing this all out for nothing. When I was suspicious that I had OC and was waiting for an appointment with an oral surgeon for a biopsy, I found the OCF website. I started to read through it and I was terrified! I actually didn't return and join these forums until I was four months post op and had a scare with an enlarged lymph node. I ended up being fine, thankfully, but I am so glad that I came back when I was ready. The people here are your lifeline when you are dealing with OC. There are so many caregivers on these forums. Sometimes, I have trouble remembering who is a patient and who is a CG! We are all here for you, for any reason. Another good thing is that there are many folks here from Australia and the UK...different time zones, so you may find someone contact in the wee hours of the night when you can't sleep and might be worried.

Please keep us posted. Best of luck in the coming times.

With great care,
Kerri