Mary,

Find another ENT or an oral surgeon who will do a biopsy. Anything that is present for more than 2 weeks needs further looking into. The "ONLY" way to know if it is cancer is to have it examined under a microsope. Nobody can tell you that something isn't cancer, just by looking at it. Thickness has nothing to do with it.

Thanks for the response, I am sure I will get another opinion. In your opinion, is a brush biopsy good enough?

Mary

In my experience, most brush biposies come back either negative or needs further testing. So then a regular biopsy needs to be done. So why do the brush biopsy first? Go to the gold standard from the get go.

I'm glad I didn't waste time with a brush biopsy.

Ya like I said, I went in, no one thought it was cancer, and they putzed around giving me a steroid gel first and then a anti fungal pill and none of that helped. So about 2 months after the first time I saw them, they finally did the biopsy and it was cancer. Again not trying to scare you, but my doc was a oral surgeon, and mine looked nothing like cancer, because the tumor was inside my tongue and the spot on the side of my tongue was it growing out the side of my tongue and I am a lot younger then most who get this, so it looked nothing like what it usually does. I would just ask them to biopsy just in case. If you go back in 3 weeks and have no real changes, I would ask for a biopsy, so you don't have to wait as long as I did to find out.

This is like spotting a Dollar and a penny on the ground. Which would you pick up 1st? LOL No bout adought it.

Well, the steroid ointment took away the burning and redness right away, but the tissue still looks different, and feels different with my tongue. I have also noticed some other spots in my mouth. A bump where my left tonsil used to be, and under my tongue on the right side. I see in my area there is a dentist that is a oral pathologist, and also we have a oral surgeon. I will be calling for an appointment on Tuesday. The one that has the earliest appointment is the one I will go to.

I went for my recheck to the ENT, the spot is basically the same as it was, just not quite as inflamed. He came in, looked at it and said "I don't know what the heck it is, it's not cancer, but I don't know what in the heck it is."

Gee thanks doc, does that mean I don't have to pay my bill?
At least he admitted he didn't know, I guess.

I'm really concerned for you and this doctor. He doesn't know what it is, but it's not cancer??? That's silly talk. All over this forum you will see that you need a biopsy to know what it is. He should want to do a biopsy to know what it is.

My spot looked like it was nothing too. Just a canker sore looking thing that wasn't going away. I went a whole year before I had a biopsy and I am thankful every day that it was caught before it was much worse.

I hope someone will be able to give you some answers.

cranberrymary,

Go to the search bar and look up "how potato chips saved my life" It is the story of my docs telling me i did not have cancer.

Take a look

I was told that my problems were nothing and that what ever was making my teeth fall out and making it difficult to eat would go away by a few drs before I saw a good one. Everything went away ok including my chompers when they had to be removed after a surgery and a reoccurence. How little some drs know. The lump on my tongue was also just a sore that would leave. LOL Oh yes. These all left with a 70 lb weight loss and asll other losses I endured. Find a good CCC and go for it.