Hi Laurie, I expect more knowledgeable posters here will shed light on the issue you raised. I just want to share my own experience and views, hopefully to give you some peace of mind. I was diagnosed with stage 4B (T2N3M0)tonsil cancer 3 years ago. I never asked my doctors about prognosis because any people with common sense know that statistics do not favour advanced cancer patients. My doctor never gave me false hope, nor did he ever discourage me with pessimistic figures. There are many factors other than the stage that affect a patient's prognosis. The past record showed that some patients of earlier stage cancer could be defeated finally while those of more late stage survived the battle for a long time ,of course,there are more cases on the reverse. I can claim myself, for the time being, a winner of the battle but I really don't know how many more years I can live without the cancer revisiting me. But who knows? My oncologist told me he could not even tell how long he could live, so how can he predict how long I can live? The news you got from your doctor today about Bob's reaction to the treatment was already the best possible news you could get at this moment. There of course is a long way to go before a complete recovery, if there is one for cancer patients. I never tell people I am fully cured because cancer is famous for recurring. That's why close observation is a must. Statistics are numbers only and serve as a reference. To me, it they are of my advantage, I stick on that; if not, I forget them. Don't worry about things beyond our control.

Karen.