Yeah, I looked at that link again, Gary. To see if it has changed again (it has already changed once for stage II since last year when I was getting recommendations). It looks like if a neck dissection is done and the nodes all come out clean there and there are no other adverse features such as perineural invasion, or positive margins then they don't recommend radiation anymore (I think the old version used to say it was optional). Its only if there are adverse features or there's a node that shows as positive after surgery that they recommend radiation and only if there are positive margins and positive nodes they'd recommend both radiation and chemo. So Stage II really is door number one, two or three before surgery--it's the results of surgery and the pathology on the lymph nodes they remove that decides what happens next!

Also, I'm going to contradict Gary just a little because in this case I think it is very possible to get a CCC to give a second opinion after surgery (this is the way I did it) since the results of the surgery are what makes the difference about what happens next, so a second opinion doesn't have to be given before surgical treatment.

Anyway, H, you've been given good advice by everyone so far in that the best way you can be of support is to try to go to the Doctor's apppointments with your mother, if you can, and ask questions and take notes. Encourage her to get a second opinion. And acupuncture and herbal medicines may be things you can use to help her through recovering from her treatment, they are in NO way effective treatments in themselves for this disease.

Nelie