Hi LoneWolf,
I have tongue cancer so I can share my story with you. I'll will give you the shortened version of course:)
I had a sore spot on my tongue for a while that felt like an ulcer. When it was biopsied by an oral surgeon it showed severe dysplasia. Then I had surgery and it was cancer. By surgery is called a partial glosssectomy. They remove some of the tongue and it hurts, I can't lie. I have had 3 more since then. My last was just 2/11/09 and I'm recovering now. Even after all of them I don't have any problems with my speech or eating once the recovery is over.
I hope this gives you an idea of what can happen. As I'm sure you already suspect, there are so many factors that make everyone's experience a little bit different.
Good luck and keep us posted.
Suzanne