If you look at Otolaryngology under the "Doctors" link at the CTCA website, you'll see that the hospitals in Philadelphia, the Atlanta area and the Phoenix area each have only one ENT on staff and the hospitals near Chicago and in Tulsa have none. (Last year CTCA had only one ENT for all of its facilities.) So head/neck/oral cancer isn't an area in which CTCA has a lot of experience.

The top centers in the U.S. have many more ENTs on staff -- M.D. Anderson (#1 in cancer and #5 in ENT according to the U.S. News rankings) has 14, and Johns Hopkins (#1 in ENT and #3 in cancer) has 12. Closer to home for you, UAB -- which Eva Grayzel mentioned and which, like M.D. Anderson and Hopkins, is a member of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, an alliance of 21 leading cancer centers in the U.S. -- has five. These numbers would allow for diverse perspectives and easy consultations as a treatment plan is developed.

If it turns out that you are dealing with a recurrence, your best move is to be at a place that treats hundreds, or even thousands, of OC cases each year.