Please keep this in mind: It's not cancer until the pathology report says it is. Any further treatment will depend on how it is staged -- and even then, there are variations, as you'll see as you continue to read here.

One OCF member, davidcpa, got five opinions after he was diagnosed. All but the last, from a comprehensive cancer center, recommended surgery. He ended up being treated at the CCC with radiation and chemo only.

The latest treatment protocols for head/neck cancers are available here, but you may be getting ahead of yourself by reading them now.

When I first asked about leukoplakia and dysplasia on these boards in May 2006, here's how OCF founder Brian Hill responded:
[quote]This is not a rush situation. Leukoplakia is a PRE-cancerous condition that does not always move completely into malignancy. Dysplasia are those cells which are no longer normal, but they are not really malignant yet...an in-between state, so to speak. Dysplasias also do not always go completely over to the dark side, but they are a step in that direction... and having them removed, or watched very regularly, is prudent. Dysplastic leukoplakias can often return after surgical removal, many times done with a laser, sometimes via a blade excision. Keep an eye on things even after the removal from now until forever.[/quote]