Tongue Cancer: Diagnosis And Treatment

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Hey everyone,

Just wanted to give a bit info about my diagnosis and treatment.

So I'm a 44 year old non smoker and in 2013 (when I was 35) I had a white patch (Leukoplakia) with moderate dysplasia on the right side of my tongue near the back teeth which was removed through laser ablation.

Since then my tongue has been generally fine but late last year I had an ulcer erupt in the same part of the tongue where I'd had the white patch.

In January I went to see my old doctor (I'd been discharged from hospital many years previous of course) at a private hospital to see what he thought about it.

He said it looked very suspicious and I was quickly transferred back to my local NHS hospital where I had a biopsy and CT scan.

CT scan didn't show any involvement with the lymph nodes in the neck or metastasis to the lungs but biopsy showed Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the tongue. At this point they think it's stage 1 as the cancer was still quite small and there doesn't seem to have been any spread beyond the tongue.

Surgery was recommended - Partial glossectomy with a wide excision and level I-III neck dissection.

I had the operation this day last week - Thursday 31st March - And I'm now back home and recovering,

I'm having the usual issues with speaking that you'd expect one week post operative and numbness/swelling in the neck area after the dissection, again all to be expected at such an early stage in the recovery process.

I'll find out at the end of the month whether I'll need any adjuvent treatment (hopefully not but we'll see)

Main thing I'm hoping for is my speech to settle down (given what I've been through I don't think I'm speaking too badly already) as I'm a weather forecaster on YouTube so speaking is my life...

I've started doing some cancer vlogs on my personal YouTube channel to raise awareness and let people follow my journey: https://www.youtube.com/user/GavinPartridge

So that's my story. It's been a tough few weeks but I'm getting through and will hopefully be out on the other side very soon but time will tell.

Thanks everyone.

Gavin

LindaWT over 3 years ago

Hi Gavin and thanks for the update on how you're doing.

I had robotic surgery to remove a tumour from the base of my tongue plus a neck dissection followed 6 weeks later with radiotherapy. My treatment finished in August 2018.

Hopefully you've seen someone from Speech and Language. Were you given any gentle exercises from physio for the neck dissection? They help keep your shoulder and neck supple and mobile and prevent them from stiffening up.

I'm just about to check out your weather forecast........

Linda x

GavinP over 3 years ago in reply to LindaWT

Hi Linda,

Speech and language therapy hasn't been mentioned yet (which I'm taking as a good sign - hopefully they are expecting a near full recovery maybe)

Yes I have been given exercises to begin for the neck. I start them 2 days after I get the staples out. Staples coming out next Monday, so I can begin neck exercises on Wednesday next week.

It sounds like your treatment has been 100% successful. I find stories like this inspirational. It's just amazing what they can do nowadays for head and neck cancer isn't it?

And ooo.. the weather! Well, the link I posted is to my old YT channel which I now use to vlog (and I'm vlogging about mouth cancer at the moment) but my weather channel is GavsWeatherVids - So if you want to see me doing the "day job" this is the channel haha

https://www.youtube.com/c/GavsWeatherVids

At the moment I'm having a break though. I'm hoping to return to the weather in June but not sure if that's realisitc or not really... we'll see.

Diagnosis: Squamous Cell Carcinoma right side of the tongue - T2, N0, M0 (2022) / Leukoplakia with moderate dysplasis (2013)

Treatment: Partial glossectomy with a wide excision and level I-III neck dissection (31/3/22)

Please check out my mouth cancer vlog here: https://www.youtube.com/user/GavinPartridge

LindaWT over 3 years ago in reply to GavinP

Well I've just had a listen to your vlog - I think your speech is pretty amazing already Gavin. Well done for doing it.

Linda x

GavinP over 3 years ago in reply to LindaWT

Thanks so much Linda. I think I'm doing OK given what I've been through. Just need to sort out that "Sssss" sound haha!

Diagnosis: Squamous Cell Carcinoma right side of the tongue - T2, N0, M0 (2022) / Leukoplakia with moderate dysplasis (2013)

Treatment: Partial glossectomy with a wide excision and level I-III neck dissection (31/3/22)

Please check out my mouth cancer vlog here: https://www.youtube.com/user/GavinPartridge

Beesuit over 3 years ago in reply to GavinP

Gavin you sound pretty good. I’ve subscribed to your weather channel to add to all the weather apps I have on my phone to plan my beekeeping round. All beekeepers are weather app nuts.

Dani

Base of tongue cancer. T2N0M0 6 weeks Radiotherapy finished January 2019

I BLOGGED MY TREATMENT

Macmillan Support Line - 0808 808 00 00 7 days a week between 8am-8pm

GavinP over 3 years ago in reply to Beesuit

Awwwwww... thank you so much Dani. Hopefully when I get this cancer milarky out of the way and return to what I love, which is the weather, I'll be able to provide some useful forecasts for you (and all Bee Keepers lol)

Diagnosis: Squamous Cell Carcinoma right side of the tongue - T2, N0, M0 (2022) / Leukoplakia with moderate dysplasis (2013)

Treatment: Partial glossectomy with a wide excision and level I-III neck dissection (31/3/22)

Please check out my mouth cancer vlog here: https://www.youtube.com/user/GavinPartridge

RadioactiveRaz over 3 years ago

Hi Gavin. Welcome to the group yiu seem to be doing pretty well guven that’s it’s onky been a week. I will add your channel I’m a keen biker and Gardener as well. Onwards and uowards .

If by chance yiu are unlucky enough ti need radiotherapy there’s lots of us in here who will help you me included.
Hazel x

Hazel aka RadioactiveRaz

My blog is www.radioactiveraz.wordpress.com HPV 16+ tonsil cancer Now 6 years post treatment. 35 radiotherapy 2 chemo T2N2NM.Happily getting on with living always happy to help

2 videos I’ve been involved with raising awareness of HNC and HPV cancers

https://www.instagram.com/merckhealthcare/reel/DBs8Y0niJ8N/

https://oraclehnc.org.uk/signawaycancer

PFJTHS over 3 years ago

Hi Gavin

Just caught up on your weather and blog videos. You are exactly a year behind my last surgery.

Love the way you discuss the weather - you've got a new subscriber. Hopefully you can look at the Jurassic Coast for some sailing forecasts :-)

You blog is amazing. You have recovered really well, very early. Hopefully that will bode well for recovery going forwards. Keep up the great work and look after yourself with physio exercises to minimise the impact of the dissection.

Peter

See my profile for more details of my convoluted journey

GavinP over 3 years ago in reply to RadioactiveRaz

Thank you so much for the sub Hazel. Hopefully I can keep you informed when I return to the weather soon.

Radiotherapy is what I'm most concerned about as I know it's brutal on the mouth so hopefully I get away with it but we'll see...

Diagnosis: Squamous Cell Carcinoma right side of the tongue - T2, N0, M0 (2022) / Leukoplakia with moderate dysplasis (2013)

Treatment: Partial glossectomy with a wide excision and level I-III neck dissection (31/3/22)

Please check out my mouth cancer vlog here: https://www.youtube.com/user/GavinPartridge

GavinP over 3 years ago in reply to PFJTHS

Thanks so much for the sub Peter. I love what I do and I've been really worried that cancer would take the weather away from me (as who wants to watch someone that can't speak properly doing the weather?) but I have been surprised at how much speech I have just one week from the operation and hopefully that bodes well as you say.

I haven't done any neck exercises yet as I still have the staples in but they are coming out on Monday and then I can get started. I can't wait quite honestly!

Diagnosis: Squamous Cell Carcinoma right side of the tongue - T2, N0, M0 (2022) / Leukoplakia with moderate dysplasis (2013)

Treatment: Partial glossectomy with a wide excision and level I-III neck dissection (31/3/22)

Please check out my mouth cancer vlog here: https://www.youtube.com/user/GavinPartridge

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