Debz- My husband was told for a year by three different doctors that the sore on the floor of his mouth was a virus, cold sore, even a blocked salivary gland. By the time we got him to an oral surgeon it was stage 4 SCC. It had spread to his lymph nodes and now it has metastasised into his right lung. He is only 47. The oral surgeon took one look at it and knew what it was before he even took the biopsy. It just so happens he is a pathology professor at Columbia University Hospital. It is so sad that these other docors don't refer people to a specialist right away. This could have been caught so much sooner. The original dentist has been a family friend for 20 years! I fear for the rest of his patients. Sue