Hi. It's amazing that I have worked with computers for 15 years and have hardly posted on this type of forum. I found out today that I have a marble sized lump under an inflamed circle on the right side of my tongue. My Doctor has been treating the circle with three biopsies, removal of the inflamed area, cortosone paste, a shot, and a potent mouth wash coctail and the area has still not healed since May. An MRI finally found the lump, so, given the history and symptoms, the lump is going to be treated like tongue cancer. Biopsies show only inflamation. Does a two week recovery sound realistic?

Mark, welcome to OCF! Sorry you are going thru some problems with this sore. I can attempt to give you a guess but thats all it will be. What kind of doctor is treating you? If this sore is going to be treated as oral cancer, then what exactly will the doctor be doing to treat it? Do you smoke or drink? If so, quit to give your mouth a chance to heal.

If I were in your position, I would seek out a second opinion at a large cancer center. How long you will take to recover depends on many factors, including age and health. One thing you mentioned is that this area has not healed since May. By saying you are having healing issues, it leads me to think you could be in recovery longer than 2 weeks. So to answer your question, I would guess it could be 2 to 4 weeks (possibly even longer) for recovery depending on how much tissue is going to be taken.

When treating cancer, if a patient is having surgery the surgeon will remove a wide margin around the tumor. This is to make sure he gets every single teeny tiny cell or it will just come back. This is just to help you understand, not exactly what will happen with your situation. For example, say your tumor is the size of a dime, the surgeon will take tissue the size of at least a quarter. Many cancer patients will also have radiation with or without chemo to 'clean up' any stragglers. Was that discussed with you? I would think probably not since the lump is only an inflammation.

A couple words of advice.... surgeons cut and once its gone it cant be put back to be the same as it was prior to the surgery. Please see an ENT who is familiar with oral cancer and anything else that can happen in a persons mouth. Try rinsing at least 4 times per day with a mixture of 16 oz warm water, 2 tsp baking soda and 2 tsp salt. That should help it to heal.

Good luck!

Yes RUN to another or should I say to the first qualified medical practitioner to get a real diagnosis. "Treating this like cancer" without knowing if it is cancer is the dumbest comment I have heard since I have been on this board and believe me I have read some doosies.

You see it's only cancer if it has been biopsied and confirmed as such by a pathologist. If it's not cancer then it needs to be treated as such. If it is cancer then the treatment process ramps up 1000 fold and you don't want to go there unless you absolutely have to.

Please get yourself an appt with an ENT. That would probably be my next move. I went to 5, as in cinco, qualified doctors before I let anyone do anything more than a biopsy and I am glad I did because IMO if I had stopped after the 3rd doc I wouldn't be typing right now unless they have computers 6 feet under.

Oh welcome to this site. You did the right thing by presenting yourself and seeking help. Keep on searching.

Thank you for your comments. The doctor who has been treating me is through KP. This doctor has been very aggressive. As I understand it, the doctor plans to have the lump checked by a pathologist during the surgery. He advised he is trying to avoid multiple surgical procedures. Without mentioning names...

Background
Head & Neck Surgery is another name for Ear, Nose, and Throat (ENT) or Otolaryngology. My specialty encompasses the medical and surgical management of disease involving the ear, nose, sinuses, throat, and neck. Some of the problems that I encounter include hearing loss, ear infections, cholesteatoma, chronic sinusitis, nasal polyps, nasal septal deviation, head & neck tumors, facial fractures, hoarseness, and thyroid disease.


Roles and Responsibilities
As your physician, we will have several goals to accomplish together. During your office visit, we will discuss your symptoms, examine the ears, nose, and throat, and, if needed, use other tools, such as lab tests, imaging and hearing tests to develop a diagnosis. Then, we will discuss treatment options and hopefully offer you enough information so that you will be able to make an informed decision on your medical and/or surgical treatment.

Credentials
Medical Education UC San Francisco,
San Francisco, CA
Internship Vanderbilt University Medical Center,
Nashville, TN
Residency Vanderbilt University Medical Center,
Nashville, TN
Board certification Otolaryngology,
American Board of Otolaryngology

Thanks Christine. I have never smoked and I might have a glass of wine or a beer once a month. I agree with the healing history and expected recovery. Chemo or radiation has not been mentioned yet. Having had my uvula and soft palate removed for sleap apnea, which did not help much, I totally understand about "..it can't be put back.." I have tried the warm water and sodium approach. Basically, the surface area has remained the same, no better and no worse. One biopsy showed a yeast infection which was taken care of. I should mention that the doctor removed the entire circle down to the muscle as well and that has not fully healed after a month.

Mark, I recommend you listen to DavidCPA and Christine. No matter what your doctor's credentials are it sounds crazy to me to operate on something because he thinks it could be cancer even though it hasn't been biopsied. Or did one of those three biopsies you mention show a malignancy?

You don't say where in California you are, but if you're anywhere near LA I know some great people I can recommend.

Good luck - keep us posted.

I would obtain copies of your actual test results - particularly the pathology reports. They have to give them to you if you request them.
Also, KP does have a procedure for obtaining second options. Might be time to use it!
Maria

My thanks to everyone. I will definately check out my options for a second opinion. By the way, I am in the Sacramento area. Ironic that I work as a contractor for Sutter and my health insurance is through KP via my wife. Best wishes and have a great weekend.

Hi there I had a very similar situatin to yours for several years. My tongue was inflamed and sor, two buppies said it wasn't cancer inflammation only - had the first ENT I went to gone deeper he would have found the lump I under the inflamed area inside my tongue two years prior to my dx - another dr. Finally looked at it - said I don't like this area did a deeper biopsy and it came back cancer. It's good he's removing it however do have it done at a ccc - if it is a tumor, it should be treated aggressively. Best of luck!