Meet others living with Head & Neck Cancer: Introduce yourself

Thank you. I am at msk Sloane Kettering. I have a denture. They were afraid fibula to make jaw wouldn’t take if radiation

I have a sore on my mouth that is not healing. What is the quickest way to get this evaluated and treated?

You are very fortunate to be at such a great cancer center. Hoping you can avoid radiation as that is what created long term side effects for me. Radiation was a fail because the cancer came back in my neck one year after the end of my radiation therapy. I then had a neck dissection. Best of luck, ask questions, accept help and remember you are stronger then you think.

Welcome to Connect @pilot1a.
I would start with asking your dentist or pcp for a referral to an oral surgeon. There you can have a biopsy done to get your diagnosis. Often followup surgery can be done there as well, or referral to an oncologist if it turns out to be cancer. My father had oral cancer begin as a small nonhealing sore. He had a history of 50 years of smoking as well as regular alcohol consumption and those are predisposing factors to oral cancer. The HPV virus is also a common cause and carries a better prognosis for good response to treatment. Do you have a regular dentist who can give you a referral?

Thank you for your response, yes I do have a regular dentist that I see. I have an appointment on July 9th for a biopsy. Is that soon enough or should I try to get an earlier appointment with a different doctor.

That is only a couple of weeks and I would be content with that. Make sure when you should expect results and if you don't hear from doctor on time then start calling.

Hello @larsonsec. I doubt that karma is involved, but perhaps other exposures over those years may have had an influence. My SCC began in skin deep in ear canal over 12 years ago. As a veterinarian I have had much more radiation exposure than the average human with restraining animals for radiographs. Even with lead aprons and thyroid protectors, we know about radiation scatter and that we cannot avoid it all. At least you are well versed and knowledgable about your medical situation and proper treatment. My tumor also involved facial nerve and temporal bone as my initial surgery was a subtotal temporal bone resection with partial parotidectomy and neck dissection. I hope your proton therapy is very successful with minimal side effects. I am lucky to have my last metastasis controlled by Libtayo immunotherapy and after 2 years on it and a year off, so far so good with NED. It sounds like you have a top notch group of doctors for your medical care. Good luck to you.

Tonsil cancer. TORs and neck dissection scheduled for tomorrow. Thanks to everyone that’s contributed to this group.

Hi @kcaldaba and welcome to our group. Good luck tomorrow and good healing. If you have questions during recovery please don’t hesitate to ask. Courage.

@larsonsec, oh the irony. I hope your experience as a PA in a otorhinolaryngology/head and neck surgery group helps you to be prepared for the the journey ahead and the questions to ask and people to consult.

How are you doing on the proton beam radiation treatment along with cisplatin? How many more PBT sessions to go?