Hi Michele. I am also a caregiver to my husband who was diagnosed with SCC, primary right tonsil with 1 lymph node involvement in October. You sound so much like how I was in the beginning of all this. My husband had a modified right neck dissectomy in October and had developed a seroma after surgery, which is a pocketing of fluid underneath the skin. He had to have this pocket of fluid aspirated twice a week for the next month until it eventually went away. Maybe this is the reason the opening that was left? Also Leon is having IMRT (39 treatments). He has 11 treatments left. The first 25 treatments large areas were radiated on all areas of his neck and oral cavity, now he is in what they call the coning down stage where specific areas are targeted. He will have that for his remaining treatments. Hang in there. It is tough. It's scary and your life's routine that we had grown very comfortable with is disrupted. I cried off and on all the time too. I finally had to get a little help and have been taking Lexapro since the end of December and it has made a vast improvement in me. Just keep asking questions. No questions are dumb!