Oral Biopsy

I'm not sure how quickly the cancer can spread but there is always someone more knowledgeable than me  from this group that may be able to  answer your question.  If things had not progressed as they did for me I think I would have opted for the holiday pre surgery but that is with the knowledge of hindsight.   What tests are you having tomorrow?

Hi Re going  abroad remember you’ll have to declare the cancer to your travel insurer. I went away ro Spain  weeks after treatment for my cancer finished. If you're due to go away soon ask your cancer nurse how long the waiting is at your hospital? I know a few who have delayed their treatment to enjoy a trip away prior to treatment starting to no ill effect. On other hand if you were thinking of going away for months that’s a different matter. Be guided by your cancer nurse and consultant. But remember to declare to travel insurers.
  Head and neck cancers do respond well to treatment it could be yiu don’t need anything)ng it her than surgery it all depends in scans. 

Hazel 

Hi Makkie

I was diagnosed with ealry stage SCC plus dysplasia on the side of my tongue this time last year. I had my biopsy 8th Dec, diagnosis confirmed 12th, MRI/CT scans Xmas eve, surgery 10th Jan. All NHS, all very quick!

The one thing I didn't have was sentinel node biopsy as the waiting list was too long, and woulf have delayed surgery by 1 month or more.

My surgery was quick - 1 hour - and I was realeased from hospital that day. Surgeon was very pleased and confident he had got clear margins. No stitches as the wound was cauterised. Surprisingly little pain as it was numb.

Had follow up phone call with the SALT the next day. I was encouraged to speak instantly.

I was on liquids/blended food for 2 weeks before I gradually introduced other soft foods. About a month before i was eating pretty normally, with a couple more weeks for things like crisps. Big tip is to buy a blender before your op and experiment if you have never used one before. I even found curry and rice blends well!

I was off work for a month (I teach), with a 6 week phased return after that.

Had a follow up with consultant 1 month after surgery, he confirmed clear margins of >5mm. Then after 3 months I had an ultra sound scan of my neck, and have had 2 more at 3 month intervals. Should be due another soon, they are to monitor the lymph nodes to check there was no spread.

At almost 1 year on now, my speech is very good ( I am the only one who ever notices), although to me I do slur some words, especialy when talking at "teaching volume/speed". I do get tired easily from talking (but I have other health conditions which contibute hugely to my tiredness levels).

My eating is 90+% normal- although I do need to be careful with sharp/crunchy foods and hot drinks/food. I still have some numbness down the side of my tongue. The scar has healed beautifully.

I am grateful everything went so well and I did not need radio/chemo/flap etc.

Good evening makkie, sorry to hear the news, its only natural to be upset and concerned, please stay on sites like this and not google as its often very misleading. There have been a lot of people on here who have had tongue cancer and in most cases, they make a good recovery, its good they have caught yours early as the earlier they discover it the better the chances are. A lot depends on what they decide to do, whether it is a course of treatment( radio/chemo), or a mixture of surgery and treatment this will be explained when they get the scan, and biopsy results back. Most cancers are slow-growing so waiting for a few weeks will not make a lot of difference. Wishing you all the best with your plan of treatment, take care. 

                                          Chris                                               

Hi Makkie,

sorry you had these news. 

Did you get any specifics? Such as type, size etc. 

I feel I am about 3-4 weeks ahead of you. 

5 weeks ago I had a surgery because I had severe dysplasia on the right back side of my tongue. During the surgery they found a tumour in my tongue and they cut it out with a margin to prevent going back in later. They sent this to pathology and said hopefully it is not aggressive. 

3 weeks ago I was told it was cancerous non-HPV tumour. The next steps were - decision making. 

To either monitor or have the neck surgery to remove nymph nodes to check if they have cancerous deposits. The recommendation was for the latter and this is what we are going with. 

Depending in the discovery ahead of us it will be no action, RT or RT & Chemo in respective order of spread on nymph nodes. 

I feel we are in the same situation just weeks apart. It's a roller coaster, from receiving news and hearing what now. 

Some days I think I can go through with this and other days I am petrified when I realise the reality of everything. 

It is however humbling to remember it's early stages, as I am told mine is too. 

Mine is non-HPV which technically is more difficult to treat but I have been told the odds are still good. It's good to hear but there is always doubt behind it. 

That said, you are not alone. 

We are a bunch of online strangers but we are with you. 

I moved from Manchester after living there for over a decade. It's a good city with great people. 

Sorry, I hope it's okay to ask for myself. I had to make the decision for the nymph node surgery or not. Do I understand right yiu didn't have it? And did they suggest it before the surgery on the tongue? I am just confused as usually it's the other way around. 

Just curious as that is ahead of me and I can't stop thinking about it. 

Thanks.

Thanks for sharing. Happy for you! I have further tests tomorrow and hopefully will have surgery soon. All depends on how fast they get the results from tomorrow and MDT meeting 

Thanks Chris! The doctor said it was early stages and it would be surgery to remove the cancerous tissue. Further tests tomorrow. Thanks again 

Hey Rowan, 

after receiving the news I was in shock and concerned about family etc so didn’t ask a lot of questions as I should have. The consultant said it was early stages and I’d have surgery to remove the cancerous tissue. as for the lymph nodes they didn’t feel anything but having some tests tomorrow hopefully it hasn’t spread and it’s localised to the tongue itself 

Wishing you all the best on your journey too!

makkie said:

The doctor said it was early stages and it would be surgery to remove the cancerous tissue. Further tests tomorrow

My neighbour a quarter of a mile away had tongue cancer discovered after my treatment had finished. I live in rural Wales and she is my nearest. who would think that in a sparsely populated area we would be of an ilk. She had a simple operation and needed no CRT. She is very well; speaks with a slight lisp...that's all