r/cancer

Hi everyone, I wanted to share my story here in hopes that it might help someone else or raise awareness, especially for younger people.

​I am a 26-year-old male. As I’ve come to learn, getting tongue cancer at such a young age is quite rare. It all started about 3 or 4 months ago when I noticed a swelling on the left side of my tongue. Coincidentally, I had just gotten a dental filling around that same time. Because of this, I assumed the filling was rubbing against my tongue and causing me to accidentally bite it, so I kept putting off going to the doctor.

​Lately, I started biting it constantly. Also, my health insurance was about to expire, so I finally decided to go to the hospital and get it sorted out. When I saw the dentist, they told me that this lesion was definitely not caused by my tooth and that there was no defect in the filling that could damage my tongue.

​The dentist referred me to another dental specialist who specializes in oral issues. I used a prescribed mouthwash for two weeks, but when there was absolutely no improvement, they referred me to an ENT (Ear, Nose, and Throat) specialist.

​The very next day, I went to the ENT doctor. The moment the doctor looked at it, they knew it was something serious and immediately ordered a biopsy. Ten days later, the results came back, and I learned that I have tongue cancer.

​Here is how my treatment went. The very next day after my diagnosis, I was admitted to the hospital. After all the necessary tests and preparations, my surgery date was set. I had my surgery on February 5, 2026.

​I’m not going to lie to you. If there is anyone out there who might end up in this situation and wants to know exactly what to expect, I will tell you the absolute, unfiltered truth: the moment you open your eyes after surgery, you feel terrible. It feels as if someone shoved their entire fist into your mouth and stitched it in place. You can’t breathe properly, and because you were intubated through your nose, your nose hurts like crazy.

​On top of that, they removed all the lymph nodes on the left side of my neck. I had an incision running from my left earlobe down to the middle of my neck. I spent the first three days constantly spitting drool into tissues. Your tongue feels completely numb, and you cannot move it at all. I had about 30 stitches in it.

​I didn’t eat anything at first. Finally, when the doctor told me, "We’re going to have to feed you through a nasal feeding tube," I forced myself to start drinking water. It’s incredibly difficult at first. Because a part of your tongue is missing, the water flows straight down into your throat, causing you to choke and cough. For a short while, you literally become terrified of water, just like people with rabies. But don't worry, nothing bad happens.

​After that, I slowly started eating pudding. Around the 4th day, things began to ease up. Drinking water became easier, and I survived on pudding, fruit yogurt, and milk. I was discharged on the 7th day, and on the 9th day, the stitches on my neck were removed. The stitches on my tongue dissolved on their own.

​Around the 13th day, I managed to swallow my first bite of solid food. It was an unbelievable feeling—I had missed eating so much. Of course, it’s still tough because your tongue doesn't feel like it belongs to you anymore. You can’t really move food around in your mouth, but somehow you manage to swallow it. And yes, sometimes you accidentally bite your own tongue thinking it’s food, haha! Don't worry, it doesn't cause any real harm. The strangest part is that since the day of my surgery, my tongue hasn't hurt or ached even once. I have no idea how that's possible, but what will actually challenge you is your neck.

​I am now in my 4th month post-surgery. I was incredibly lucky because my tumor was T1N0, meaning I didn't need any chemotherapy or radiation. For the first two months, I spoke with a lisp, but don't worry, it improves significantly over time (though it obviously depends on how much of your tongue is removed). I actually started trying to speak on the 3rd day, but of course, I was completely unintelligible back then.

​Right now, I am doing really well. I go in for my monthly check-ups. If anyone out there gets diagnosed with tongue cancer in the future, I would be more than happy to help you through it. Feel free to ask me anything, and I’ll try my best to answer.

​Thank you for reading, and stay healthy!

​TL;DR: Diagnosed with tongue cancer at 26 (T1N0). Had surgery on Feb 5, 2026. The first week of recovery was brutal with breathing, swallowing, and learning to eat/drink again, but I didn't need chemo or radiation. Now at 4 months post-op, I’m doing great, eating solids, and here to answer any questions for anyone going through the same thing.

I am a thirty six year old white female who’s one month postpartum and i have history of contamination ocd.

i was talking to my short and his spit got in my mouth during speaking. in a previous convo he had said he finished chemo for lung cancer. had lung removed. and is in oral medication for the cancer didn’t specify which one … i’m worried about the toxic effects of his spit to me, breastfeeding and causing cancer in me or my baby. i’m also wondering how to disinfect what he touched incase he was sweating and the drugs came out of his body in the sweat and are on my things

i know i sound nuts but this is driving me nuts so please help do i need to pump and dump

I'm a nsclc cancer patient currently in remission,

My adult son has distanced himself. I'm elderly, about 3 1/2 years post surgery for lung cancer. Chemo and immunotherapy apparently worked because I'm still alive but it had a bad effect. I was virtually bedridden for over a year because of weakness and unrelenting fatigue.

My son was very supportive for almost a year then began distancing himself and now is incommunicado. I don't see the grandchildren either. My wife (not his mother); of over thirty years is also ignored and is upset.

The only change is my cancer. I'm still very weak and we may need to transition to assisted living soon or get serious household help.

I know cancer can have strange effects on family members and wonder if complete avoidance is something common?Its upsetting and bizarre.

patient

did you have a gut feeling that something was wrong?

It’s cancer folks. My 86 years old dad has cancer. I’m devastated.

Gleason 4+4 Score 8.

PSA 150
Bone scan clean.
No symptoms.

Will this be ADT? He had a prostate removal 20 years ago.

Hi People, going in for the last (6th) cycle of my DA-EPOCH for large B cell lymphoma. Just wanted to ask the community about what are the lifestyle or diet changes anyone has implemented after finishing chemo to avoid having the chance of relapse. Or any therapies that anyone has taken post chemo. Do let me know!

My husband was diagnosed with sino nasal cancer[, October, it was everywhere, he had surgery that removed his eye and most of the bones on the left side of his face. Then he had two major strokes, at 41, was in the ICU for 3 weeks. His tumor grew again? So quickly and they kicked him out of rehab in Kelowna

They just decided he was dying but he isnt! Chemo and immunotherapy are working but we are in BC, Canada and there is no more support. They kicked him out of the hospital and now I am the sole caregiver and the meds are hundreds of dollars and I cant work but we can't support ourselves on disability and there is no help to rehab .what do we do? Why isnt there any help?

Hi, I hope all of you were able to enjoy at least thing in your day.
Has anyone rode rides with their port? If so did you have any pain?

I had extensive radiation to my tailbone, and the skin broke last July, almost a year ago. It's gone from a pin prick to a lemon-sized wound that exposes necrotic bone.

Every plastic surgeon I've seen--top, top doctors--tell me it will never heal due to the radiation damage, and that I should just live with it because the reconstructive surgery would be so damaging. I have a relatively good quality of life right now, though my cancer is metastatic, so I'm inclined to stay the course and just do wound care, as inconvenient and awful as it is.

I'm wondering: has anyone else had a radiation wound they were told would never heal? How did you approach this?

I need help and information my son was diagnosed in 2022 ages just 16, had a few operations and radiotherapy but now there a mass on the spleen, abnormal liver test alt, ast and Ggt, a long with low img, I can’t help but assume it’s back or even worse it’s transformed, I can’t help sleep or eat over it, he’s just after a liver biopsy and currently waiting on results, I’m absolutely convinced he’s relapsing! Seriously struggling to sleep and function atm, I just have that gut feeling like I did the time around

Silver lining is the haven’t done a PET scan yet and that will determine if it has spread to my bone. Also it hasn’t spread to my brain yet, so that is also good. Chemo starts next week and they will be working towards radiation also but it would be tonwidesoread to do them both at the same time due to several lymph nodes, that would be to large of a field for radiation and chemo. I’m trying to stay positive and I have some great chosen family who have been incredibly supportive.

A few days shy of a year.
The 12.5cmX13.2cmX12.8cm mass in my chest, that was compressing my heart from beating properly, compressing the bottom half of my left lung almost giving me a collapsed lung, pressing on my spine giving me the most terrible back pains.
Is now the size of a blueberry, with no detectable cancerous activity.

After a pic line in my neck and my arm, 2 chest tubes to drain fluids, 4 biopsies, so many PET and CT scans, 3 different immunotherapies, around 12 chemotherapies, and a round of proton therapy radiation. I have no more cancer.

I’m officially an 18 year old, about to graduate high school in a week, without cancer.

This whole journey has been hard, emotionally, and physically. I lost friends, realized you can’t always trust family. But in time of need, the people who care and matter most show through.

I have had to fight with school administrators, doctors, nurses, people.
But in the end, I realized I can’t always have everyone defend me, I needed to stand up for myself too and grow my own voice, no one knows my body more than me.

In a way, I feel this part of my life has prepared me for the rest of my life, no more being the shy kid who lets everyone make decisions for her, puts everyone else above her own needs, who won’t advocate for herself cuz it’s “probably not that bad.”

I’m more than ever excited to say, I USED to have cancer.

It has been quite a journey for me, I officially finished my chemotherapy last year I had 4 cycles of VIP(Cisplatin, etoposide and ifosfamide). My last cycle was terrible, I ended up getting a infection in my blood and almost passed away due to it, I spent a month in the hospital I was in the ICU the majority of it and even had temporary dialysis and blood clots near my heart but I survived. Had to relearn to walk and my body was absolutely weak after I was discharged and had a home nurse come every week to change my IV I had antibiotic medicine attached to my arm for a month. (Man that IV made my arm so SORE!)

So I came to everyone here and too ask, when did YOU feel like your body was back to 100%?

For context prior to my cancer journey, I would go to the gym 6 days a week and my gym sessions were always about 1 - 2 Hours with a mix of cardio and weight lifting

Fast forward to now! A full year and 2 months that I’ve finished chemotherapy I’m really struggling too “find my groove” at the gym my sessions are always about 30 minutes I genuinely feel like I get sore so much faster and the days I need to take to recover are longer and I can’t even lift half the weight I used too.. I’ve been to the doctor and everything checks out I’m healthy I’ve lost about 16LB! Going to the gym the last 3 weeks straight. But it’s like cancer still haunts me some days and it reminds me how long my battle was with cancer that even with time passing it continues to affect me in someway.. if that makes sense? My last post here everyone who decided to interact eased my mind so much. So here I am again just wanting to be heard and I hope everyone here continues fighting, it’s not easy but I promise you life is beautiful and you’ll be okay.

Hello everyone,

My wife recently had a mammogram after her doctor found breast calcifications. Because there is a family history of cancer, we are understandably worried and trying to move quickly.

Her doctor recommended a stereotactic breast biopsy, but we were told there may be a national shortage of the needles needed for the procedure. We live in Houston, Texas, near the Medical Center, and I’ve been trying to find a facility that has availability or the necessary supplies, but so far I haven’t had much luck.

Has anyone in Houston dealt with this recently? Does anyone know of any hospitals, imaging centers, breast centers, or specialists that may be able to perform a stereotactic biopsy right now?

Any advice, recommendations, or direction would be greatly appreciated. We’re just trying to find a place that can help us understand our options and move forward.

Thank you so much!

June 1993. I was sixteen years old. The ACC championship was a few days behind us. I had pitched for a Jesuit high school in Connecticut, gone 9-3 my junior year with 60 strikeouts in 68 innings, and weighed 170 pounds. I threw in the mid-eighties. D1 scouts had been at my games. My coach had written my college recommendation letter that spring. He told the colleges to call him.

I was taking a shower one morning, and I felt an ache that wasn't supposed to be there. I checked. I felt something.

I went to the emergency room with what I thought was a routine problem. A doctor examined me. They drew blood. A nurse came in with the cart, took a few vials, and walked them down to the lab. I did not think about it again. They sent me home with antibiotics and told me to follow up with a urologist in five days.

The urologist examined me briefly. The bloodwork from the ER was on his desk. One number was off the charts. Alpha-fetoprotein. AFP. A protein that healthy adults barely produce. Mine was high enough that he did not need an ultrasound to know what he was looking at.

Stage IIC nonseminoma. Testicular cancer.

I had an orchiectomy at a hospital in Connecticut that week. A bigger surgery at Memorial Sloan Kettering a few weeks later, where the surgeon found cancer in seven of the eight lymph nodes he removed. Four cycles of cisplatin and etoposide through September and October. I dropped from 170 pounds to 137. I lost my hair. I could not walk up a flight of stairs without sitting down halfway.

Before the chemo started, my father drove me to a clinic and made me bank sperm. I was sixteen. I told him I just wanted to survive the next month. He told me I might want kids someday. He was right. One of my children, born years later through IVF, came from the vials we stored that summer.

I survived. The chemotherapy cisplatin worked. I went back to school. I went back to baseball.

By senior year, I had gained some of the weight back. But the body that had been throwing in the low eighties was gone. The velocity was gone. The command was different. I went 4-4. The D1 scouts stopped coming. I went to one college for a semester and tried to walk on. I did not make the team. I transferred to another school for three semesters. Then a third for two. I never graduated from any of them. I kept rebuilding.

By twenty, I was at a junior college in Connecticut. Three years older than the typical freshman. My best friend had played there the year before, called the coach, and told him to give me a look. The coach took the call. He took me in. We spent two years rebuilding the body that cisplatin had taken apart. From 175 pounds to 200. From low-eighties to 86 miles an hour.

In 1998, we won the NJCAA Division III national championship. The first Connecticut team to win one. I was the staff ace. I went 9-0 my sophomore year on a 44-5 team. Eight wins on the way to the title. The ninth win is what I have been doing ever since.

I built a career. I got married. I have wonderful children and a great life.

I thought the cancer chapter was closed.

In 2025, more than thirty years after my original diagnosis, I was diagnosed with papillary thyroid cancer. I am also currently being followed for a small kidney tumor that may be malignant, but very curable if cancerous. The drug that saved me in my teens did its job. It also showed up again, decades later, in ways the original protocols did not predict. Cisplatin late effects are documented in the literature, and the AYA cohort is the one that lives long enough for them to matter.

Hey everyone. So my chemo treatments have been incredibly hard and have taken a toll on my body

Lately, the neuropathy in my hands and feet has been getting really intense, and it’s making daily tasks a struggle. For those of you who have been through this or are currently fighting, how do you handle the nerve pain and numbness? Are there specific things that helped you get through it ?

Any advice or tips would be much appreciated right now. Thank you all.

This post isn't meant to create an argument between anyone over what is "right" or "wrong" as I understand nothing is guaranteed and individual circumstances can vary greatly but I'm trying to get a feel for what is appropriate as someone who is sharing a home with someone on chemo. How many of you that share a living space with a chemo patient mask/masked all the time outside the home? My mom moved in late-April shortly before her first chemo treatment and getting her port put in. At the time I was wearing a mask because my office had a horrible, stubborn respiratory thing making its rounds in our office area that I caught. (Even after someone otherwise felt better it took at least 1-2 full weeks for the lingering cough and nasty stubborn phlegm (even clear stuff) to totally go away. I had to mask as I was the only one to be able to help her from the hospital the day she got her port and I was still sick then at the end of April but am fine now.) Since that respiratory ick needed to cycle through everyone in the office I've been wearing my mask but the past few days I haven't really noticed any coughing or sneezing in our office (of course I know someone can be contagious before they show symptoms). But I don't mask when out shopping and there's been a couple times I've noticed my mom didn't even wear hers into Target and she's the one on chemo (she just had her 2nd round the beginning of the week--it's once every 21 days). I also never see anyone (patients, visitors, staff) masking at the chemotherapy area so I'm really curious how other people have handled that part of it.

It's been awhile since I posted. I've been on this journey for a little over a year. If you're interested in more specifics, my previous posts explain in more detail.

I have 2 cancers.

The first, which was very difficult to find, is DCIS, so has been non-aggressive. I'm currently undergoing testing to see if it's changed it's mind about that. If so, I can start chemo, etc. but no surgery because I'm too weak and malnourished for that.

The second, which was/is very aggressive, is neck & throat cancer with unknown primary. The unknown primary thing is bad. Very bad. And pretty rare (only 5-10% of all cancer patients). And I've been seen by multiple oncology specialists. No chemo because no primary. I had a pretty massive RT neck dissection 10 months ago, followed by pretty intense radiation treatments.

Also had PEG tube inserted and still have to use it. Even with that I've lost 100 lbs in the last 6 months. Needless to say, I'm malnourished and very weak. Labs are all over the place. It's been less than a week since I've finally been able to take sips of water instead of sucking on ice (that's been a game changer)

The ENT oncologist surgeon told me it had already spread to surrounding tissue and MAY have gone vascular. Found out that they expected it to show back up somewhere on my 3-month scan (it didn't) and that I would be gone by now.

6-month scan... Acute hypermetabolic axillary lymph node.

I've been getting the tests to rule out the breast CA, but my onco is pretty sure it's not. So am I. The lymph node biopsy came back metastatic non-small-cell carcinoma. My onco wants me to stay hopeful, but we both think it's the aggressive cancer. There's no treatment.

They are still trying to find the primary, but are not hopeful about that.

Mentally, I'm doing pretty okay. I'm making plans (funeral and bucket list stuff). I'm not afraid of dying. I'm sad to leave my family, especially my son. He's a grown man and my best caregiver. I was a single mom and he's my only child so we've always been very close. I'm also very close to my brothers, sis-in-law, and nieces & nephews. Pretty close to my extended family too. And I have a few close friends that have been uber- supportive.

The people on here... you have all helped me on this journey more than you can know. I can share shit here that I only share with my cancer counselor.

I'm not just giving up. I still have some things I want to do.

Thank you all for letting me share my journey through this wasteland with you. ✌🏻 & 🤟

my mother was diagnosed with cancer last year i have been taking care of her since then but I am struggling to pay my bills I want to continue to take care of her and pay my bill but I don't no how to go about it I need help.