Hello @redroadbutterfly, and welcome to Connect, although I am sorry that your cancer diagnosis is what brought you here. SCC is most commonly a skin cancer from sun exposure, but it is also related to smoking and alcohol exposure in the mouth and GI tract and other external toxins and irritants. There is likely a genetic component as well. Mine started deep in my ear canal where no sun ever shone, and was skin origin. But as a veterinarian, I had plenty of radiation exposure holding animals for x-rays. Also my father and mother both had SCC, one from smoking and alcohol orally and the other just skin from sun exposure.
I used ice and pain patches for pain control prior to surgery. Mine was invading bone so very painful and required both Tylenol and Ibuprofen around the clock. I used topical pain relief quite successfully in the form of Salonpas patches at night and Biofreeze or Salonpas roll-on during the day.
I agree with @hrhwilliam about checking for HPV type if this is a mucous membrane origin from inside the body. If it is skin origin then it will not be HPV related. The biopsy will demonstrate the origin. Skin SCC tends to respond differently than mucous membrane origin so treatment recommendations can be different. Having someone who specializes in head and neck cancer is important. We have no such specialist in NW Ohio so I travel to Mayo in Rochester MN for treatment. I have done this for 12 years now and am still alive thanks to their medical care and despite metastatic disease.
We are here to share experiences and learn from each other. How soon is your scan scheduled? Waiting is so hard. One of the things I love about Mayo....... things happen quickly.