Just got a diagnosis of T2N0M0 base of tongue, 1.5cm visible but thought to be about 2cm. Case conference consensus was bilateral radiation alone (about 15 people present, radiologists, surgeons, etc). My primary care H&N specialist is a surgeon and both he and the radiologist think either partial glossectomy+selective neck dissection alone or RT alone is advisable and up to me to decide.

I read and am told by them that 5-yr survival is about the same and the choice should be based in my case on comparative morbidity of each.

Any opinions/suggestions? Safest would be to do both.

How risky is it to first do partial glossectomy (he said about 1/3 of tongue would be removed; the tumor is far from the midline) If excised nodes are all negative and surgical margins adequate, then RT. That option *seems* logical, i.e, reserve RT for afterward, given CT last week indicated N0 status. But is it?