Hi all, new here....I'm worried. I am 28, and I do drink, drank heavily in college, but do not smoke.

2 weeks ago I came down with a cold. In three days it had cleared up, but after it went away I was left with a click or a pop around my adam's apple. It does not do it all the time and seems to only happen when I dry swallow. I took no medications for the cold.

In the 2 weeks since I was sick I now also have what I believe to be an enlarged lymph node on my right side under my jaw where the jaw meets the neck. It feels slightly larger than the left side and gives me a dull, or muscle strain type of feeling now.

Also, I can have an extremely mild sore throat that comes and goes. I think I bring it on myself by dry swallowing so much to get the click to happen. Over the weekend my neck was very stiff, but that has since gone away. The newest thing that worries me is in the back right side of my tongue I feel some weird sensation. Fullness, or tingling maybe? Its the right side of the back of the tongue, plus a little in the floor of my mouth right there too. I have had this feeling on the left side of my tongue too, but not as much.

Ears feel fine, throat feels mostly fine, I can breathe and drink and eat normally.

I have looked in a mirror sticking out my tongue as far as I can and everything looks like a normal tongue to me. My fear, is if its something deeper I cannot see on my own. The only lump I can feel is the swollen lymph node, which is located right by where all these problems. None of the sensations that make me worry are constant. They can come and go and feeling moves around my throat and tongue.

I had nothing of concern until I was sick 2 weeks ago. Should I be concerned? I have an appt with an ENT a week from today....but the meantime is killing me.

Thanks all!

Hi Pepe - It could just be an infection HOWEVER you are doing the right thing seeing an ENT next week! Where did you go to college? Our son went to U of F. We are in Sarasota and husband goes to Shands for check-ups while DavidCPA went to Moffitt. Hope you won't have to go to either place, but please let us know. We are here for you, even though we all are counting on antibiotics clearing it up for you. Where are you in Florida?

Hey Pepe,
I am sure that the swollen lymph node is just inflammation from you recent cold. My wife works for an ENT on the east coast of florida near the Palm Beach Area if we can be of any help to you.

I live in Clearwater. Went to school up north though.

I've really, really strained trying to look at my tongue. So much so that I see that flap thing in the middle of the throat. I can't see anything weird or odd, but how much am I still not seeing? Starting last night and today the main thing has been right side tongue sensation. It is the part of the tongue directly above the lymph node in question though.

Logically I am hoping that me being sick led to the lymph node being inflammed, led to my current issues.

Does what I described sound like cancer symptoms?

Edit* - Talked to fiancee who's had a sore throat recently. She said she had discomfort on the side of her tongue too. I also read 85% of "C" cases are smokers. Thats not me, so chances better? I know I shouldn't play the odds game.

So my throat is still not sore. First day in quite a few that it hasn't been sore.

The sensation in my tongue that really started last night has been coming and going throughout the day, it isnt constant but has been fluctuating minute to minute.

The lymph node in question too feels better and then feel worse. The actual lump feeling in my throat hasnt been bothering me nearly as much as it has in the past few days. Freaking out bad though...I wish I didn't have to wait a week.

Again though, symptoms, should they happen, I dont see how logically they would all hit at the exact same time, or a mere 2 week span and come and go as they do throughout the day.

I just bet it's fun trying to see down your throat. LOL I hope you do these things when you are alone, because someone wouldn't under stand why we all do such funny procedures to ourselves. You need to have the ENT give you the rundown after he checks you out. Good luck Pepe

Pepe,

I am responding to your PM here. The chances are in your favor greatly for this NOT to be Oral cancer and from the way you describe it, you probably have the flu and with your age I would try to get to see a primary care doc to see if you may have the Swine flu. Still keep the ENT appt and stop trying to look so far down your throat because you wouldn't know what to look for anyway. lol

If you want to talk my day number is 322-5669.

Thanks David!

Funny you mention Swine Flu. I got my cold a few weeks ago from my buddy. I heard the Swine Flu is actually making its rounds through his organization, so it very well could have been the swine flu. ENT is first doctor I can visit, its on the day my insurance kicks in.

I did talk to a nurse friend of mine and she said if it were swine flu that its likely for my nodes to get inflammed as its something new my body has never processed before. And that the inflammed nodes could affect the whole area around it,which would be my tongue on the inside and my jaw on the outside. (She also said common flu could do this)

So I feel better there, but it doesn't explain the clicking swallow. I will have to wait for ENT for deffinitive I guess.

On a completely different note, do you know if they finished work on the east/west trail? We love biking that cause its so scenic but havent in forever because of it being closed under the bridge.

Pepe,

Which bridge and which east west trail? The trail now goes from downtown St Pete to Tarpon Springs and covers about 40 miles.

Oh no, not the Pinellas. We do the northern section of that (the middle section by us is super boring thorugh Pinellas Park/Largo)

The east/west trail is the one that goes from Safety Harbor to Belcher Rd I believe. We like it cause it has hills, and forest, and goes past the 2 disc golf courses.