At Hopkins I met a patient who had had brachytherapy (in NYC) for oral tongue cancer, but had a recurrence within two years to the tongue and also, base of tongue/nodal area. She had surgery (negative margins) for the oral tongue cancer and is getting tomo-IMRT for the BOT cancer, with concurrent chemotherapy. The tomo-IMRT is being used as it allows them avoid radiating the front part of her mouth and tongue which had received the most radiation with the earlier seed implant.

This doesn't really answer your question (you need to ask your own doctors) but it does give some idea of how a recurrent tongue cancer is treated at a major CCC. They were quite specific about the need for the chemo, because they felt this also was an aggressive cancer.

Gail