How a healthy 27-year-old was forced to have most of his TONGUE cut out after shock cancer diagnosis which spread to his heart – as he reveals the seemingly innocent sign he missed
- A 27-year-old Australian man has had half his tongue cut out along with tumours
- Dayle Gordon’s first symptom was a seemingly innocent, but lingering, ulcer
- Doctors intitally dismissed the mouth ulcer before diagnosing him with cancer
- When cancer spread from Dayle Gordon’s neck to heart he was deemed terminal
- Mr Gordon’s wife has since begun a GoFundMe for treatment raising $55,000
A 27-year-old who originally went to the doctor in late 2019 with a lingering mouth ulcer has wound up having half his tongue removed after being diagnosed with an aggressive cancer.
Dayle Gordon from Victoria has since been told the tongue cancer has spread and is terminal, despite having undergone numerous gruelling surgeries and radiotherapy.
Mr Gordon was originally told the seemingly harmless mouth ulcer was not of concern, but a later diagnosis determined that it was cancer.
Dayle Gordon and his partner Taylah (pictured, together) have had their world tipped upside down after his cancer was deemed terminal aged 27
Mr Gordon (pictured in hospital) has been through numerous surgeries, chemotherapy and radiotherapy to battle the cancer
The fit and healthy 27-year-old then underwent surgery which cut half his tongue off, as well as removing 50 lymph nodes, his family told 7News.
After the surgery he was forced into chemotherapy and radiation treatment from which he was lucky enough to recover.
He was still having PET scans every three months to confirm his recovery was on the right track.
But by the end of 2020 he had developed a large lump on his neck, which also had to be removed.
Mr Gordon’s partner Taylah has set up a GoFundMe that has raised over $55,000 for his treatment
The lump was removed in February this year after it had grown onto an artery leading to the brain.
Disaster struck again earlier this month when doctors found a spot on his heart meaning the cancer had spread, with doctors then deeming it terminal.
Mr Gordon’s sister, Jessica Sexton said this news was the hardest to deal with.
‘I think finding the tumour on his heart was really the one that hit him the hardest because he feels like he’s gotten over hurdles and been through two major surgeries already and then to go back and then find it’s back and spread was definitely the hardest to handle,’ she said.
Mr Gordon’s sister said it was when they found the tumour on his heart that it really ‘hit him the hardest’
She said his partner Taylah had been his ‘rock’ throughout the last couple of tumultuous years.
‘She is by his side constantly and taking so much time off work to be at his appointments and there for him during his surgery recoveries,’ she said.
Mr Gordon was originally told the tumour couldn’t be operated on but ended up receiving open heart surgery when doctors found a second tumour.
His sister said they were left with only one option when the tumours were found.
‘Something like that size is just a huge risk because at anytime you could have heart failure and leaving the tumour there would have just been not an option,’ she said.
For the rest of the tumours, the 27-year-old will go through radiation therapy targeting his neck and heart.
Since then Mr Gordon has continued to search for new ways to complete rehab including RGCC onconomics testing which is only available in Europe.
He sent samples of his blood to Europe before receiving a detailed treatment plan which will last for 18 days which he will do while also undergoing immunotherapy for the next 10 weeks.
His wife has launched a GoFundMe page to help pay for their hospital expenses, currently they have raised well over $55,000.
Mr Gordon is now waiting for a response from a European treatment plan which will last for 18 days