Hello, my name is Betsy and I am new to this site. The info here is fabulous as I am need of a great deal of it. I was diagnosed with SCC on the front rightside of my tongue, T1, in Sept 2002 and the tumor was excised with margins that were clear. I was told I did not require Radiation or chemo as it was "textbook" and the margins were clear. I was monitored every 3 months and last Sept. (2004) changes were noted visually and I had surgury to biopsy the area and again margins were taken. This biopsy showed only mild dysplasia and the Panendoscopy was normal also.

Then in May my Dr. noted changes again and did a biopsy on the office that showed severe dysplasia, followed in August by another showing cancer in situ. I was refered to The Head and Neck Oncology center in London, Ont. and I saw the Team yesterday.

The informed me that I had a mass in my neck (right) and that the cancer was more advanced then the biopsies have shown. Now they want me to have a Right Hemiglossectomy,right neck dissection, left radial forearm free flap reconstruction with a tracheostomy and a panendoscopy. I was floored as my surgeon in Windsor had told me that she thought I might need a laser of the area and that it was stage 0 or in situ.

It was a very surreal experience for both myself and my husband. Of corse my mind went blank when it came time to ask pertinent questions and they want to operate in two weeks followed by radiation. I feel like everything is spinning out of control and I still need a lot of questions answered.

I hope I can here from some of you guys that have shared in this very scary prospect it is important to speak to people who have faced the same decisions. In fact, I had a brother with the same cancer who was diagnosed in 1984-he fought bravely but died in 1990. He had multiple surgeries and RT and Chemo but the Cat came back. I think having watched him struggle has jaded my perspective on these surguries that they want to do on me and I am quite concerned about my quality of life after treatment. Can anyone help me? I am very afraid.

Thanks for listening, I look foward to any input.
Sincerly, Betsy