Hello everyone.
I dont really know what to put,i should start by introducing myself,my name is Su,i am from Nottingham,England. I found out on monday (7th April) my dad had been diagnosed with tongue cancer.I am an only child and mum is quite a worrier,and my boyfriend is trying his best to be of some comfort to me,i guess i am trying to make myself feel better in the hope that someone will tell me he is going to be fine and that things will go back to the way they were before the diagnosis,lol.He told me he has to have major surgery but didnt tell me about it so if anyone knows what he will have to go through i would be very grateful.i am trying my best to stay positive but cant help but feel i am going to lose him to this.

Hello Sucow

Sorry to hear about your dad having tongue cancer. :worried: He must be upset, too. Don't blame him for not seeking treatment earlier. It is so easy to ignore things - we all do it! Be supportive of one another.

You will find the patient stories helpful. You could print out some stories for him to read. There is also information on treatment on the website. Keep us informed how he gets on, we will help answer your questions and concerns if we can.

Take care of your mother, she will be feeling devastated too.

Best wishes

Vinod :coffee:

Hi Su,

I'm really sorry to hear about your Dad and understand what you are going through. As hard as it may seem, you need to be strong and if you need someone to talk to, just send me a private message.
Please keep us posted on how he is doing.
Shelley

Hi

perhaps i can be of some help does your dad know what kind of cancer it is eg squamous cell and is it at the base of tongue or to the fore The operation is not particulary pleasanr they generally take a flap from your arm so he can talk and eat. He should recover in time. but will need a lot of tender loving care. All the best for your dad why not read guy croft from yorkshire on shared experiences he gives a good account of his experiences

Hello all

Just thought i would keep you posted as you asked.
My Dad has a lump on the left side of his tongue at the back.
He had his letter fromt he hospital today,and he goes in for his surgery on Monday 2nd June @ 10.30am!
Really nervous but glad that he dont have to wait much longer,the sooner they get to work the better chance he has of getting as close as he can back to normal.
Of course i know that theres a big possibility that the cancer may return,but to get what he has now out of the way first is our first step to recovery.
I dont quite know what to expect him to be/look like when he comes out of the surgery,but whatever happens,as long as he is ok thats fine for me.
He has asked if i can go with him and mum when he goes in,so thats good,i feel better knowing whats cracking off rather than sitting at home worrying! i like to know straight whats going off
so i will let you all know the outcome as soon as i can
Thank you all for your kind messages

Hi Su, just picked up on various postings.

Maybe your Dad was a bit like me, thinkingthere was nothing really wrong the finding you've cancer of the tongue.

What can I tell you. I'd left mine so late that I had have my tongue removed - totally plus a neck dissection. This was followed by an intensive course of radiotherapy Personally I had no problems with the radiotherapy but many people do.

All this was 20 months back. Despite expectations to the contrary I can still speak (sort of). I can still have my beer - but spirits are a no-no. In my case I can no longer cope with solid food and have to feed thru a tube, but what the hell it's better than nothing and for sure better than just leaving the cancer to grow and grow.

Your Mum and Dad will need all the support you can give them, stay positive. I'm sure that the team looking after your Dad are just as experienced and professional as the people who looked after me.

You should know there's a lot a people out here rooting for your family.

God bless

HISU,It saddens me when I read your message. I am lucky or not I had mouth & neck Cancer and they only had to remove part of my tongue but I can still speak albeit very quiet and can eat mashed up food.I go to a Cancer group at the Middlesex in London and a few guys there have had tougue Cancer and they are fine and can even speak better than me, this I can not work out!
I will pray for you and your mum & dat! tomorrow at mass its not much help I know but any question you need answering I will gladly like rest of the guys and ladies in here reply to.

Paul

Hello all,

I would just like to say that if i had'nt of found this site and all you really nice supportive people i dont know if i would of gotten my head around my dad's problem so quickly and sensibly.

It has been more use to my dad,even though he wont come near a computer!
Thanks to you guy's i have been an info bug,collecting info,then carrying it onto my dad.
He already knew some of it,and remembered lots more as i was telling him.
I was a bit dubious as to mention about the possibility of him not being able to speak properly, and eat,i think the worst was if his appearence was to change.
He is a very very social guy,and always looks after his looks i am not sure how he will come out of this but he is strong.
It is amazing to read peoples stories in such detail,and to see them still have humour,i know that sounds bad,but not being able to speak properly would damage me,i have a motor mouth!

It just goes to show that there is just no stopping some people and that there is a very good chance he will still be himself after the recovery period and all's healed.
That is a good feeling,it will be in my mind while waiting for dad to come round from the surgery.
Thank you all!

Hey All,

It's been a hectic 2 weeks,but we got through it just fine.
I went to see my Dad last Saturday ( the day after he had the op) he looked a mess to be honest,really 'not there',but on Sunday he looked much better. It did'nt help his spirits as 3 people unfortunatly died around him,which was very sad.
Monday was a bad day again for him,but from Tuesday he has gone from strength to strength,the doctors are suprised at how fast he has come round and are very happy with him which was great to hear.
But the good news is he is ready to come home,he stayed strong as did all of us around him,he had loads and loads of support from his millions of friends!,everyone pulled together which was brilliant to see.
He is still deaf in one ear,and has a numb cheek,he has been told this may not clear up,but he saw the funny side,cracking some jokes about it,and his speech! altho he speaks really well,better than i thought.
He is on normal foods now which pleased him no end! his tongue is still quite frozen but he is coping well with it.
I just wanted to say a huge thank you to all of you who helped me educate myself and get myself prepared for his big operation,and for the kind messages i have recieved.
Thank you loads.