Hi there,

I am new here. I am 46 and found a spot on my tongue. I went to my dentist who referred me to an oral surgeon for a biopsy. I see the oral surgeon in two weeks and I am scared to death.

I smoked for 29 years but quit on March 15, 2012. I do not miss it one bit. I am so happy to be rid of that habit!

I do not drink.

My grandfather died from oral cancer at 42 years old. I am not sure what kind he had but he was a heavy smoker and he was a heavy drinker.

I am glad to have found this forum. Well sad to be here really due to the reason for being here but I feel comforted knowing I am not alone.

Take care,
Mich

Hi there,

I am new here. A few weeks ago I found a purple spot on the side of my tongue. It is small but odd. I never had anything purple like that anywhere in my mouth before.

I went to my dentist and he didn't seem overly concerned but he said he wanted me to see the oral surgeon for a biopsy just to be safe. I made my appointment and it is in two weeks. I was told I would just be seen for an exam that day and if the doctor feels I need a biopsy it would be scheduled for another day.

My tongue only hurts from me looking in the mirror at that spot so much. Other than that the purple spot does not hurt.

Has anyone heard of a purple spot on the tongue before and have any idea what this might be? I mean I know I might be dealing with oral cancer but if it isn't that what else could it be I wonder.

I am really, really petrified.

Thank you,

Hi Mich - I know how you must be feeling. . . . but the only way to tell if it is oral cancer is with the biopsy. Waiting is so-o-o-o difficult so how about if you try to move up the appointment? Just call and tell them how worried you are and what it looks like. They can move appointments around to accommodate you. My son had a spot which grew into a purplish sore and he waited because he had no health insurance. Not all OC's have pain associated with it, but my son's SCC (Squamous Cell Cancer) was wrapped around a nerve and it became very painful. By the time he had the biopsy it was a Stage 2. So even if it's nothing serious, just being petrified about it is worth trying to get the appointment moved up. The earlier you go, the better you will feel and the best chance you have of a successful outcome. My son is now 7+ years cancer-free and doing just fine. Hoping the very best for you as well.

All things considered you have found the right place for support. I have just finished my 12th week of post treatment and know what you are thinking/feeling right now. Not sure you want to exert that stress upon yourself though. The good is you are going to get a biopsy. My first 2 visits I was told to take some antibiotics. Took over a year for someone to find out what was going on. So you know you have something but you don't know what. I would encourage you to relax and wait until you get the results. It is tough but I determined to live my life as normal as I could until I received the biopsy results. If you have something it is not going to go away. If you don't you will waste a lot of energy worrying about nothing. Tough road but hang in the best you can. Keep us posted and know many have been through this and will guide you and advise you. Take the time to get your self in shape in case. You have some time use it to your advantage. Sorry you are here.

[quote=JamesD]All things considered you have found the right place for support. I have just finished my 12th week of post treatment and know what you are thinking/feeling right now. Not sure you want to exert that stress upon yourself though. The good is you are going to get a biopsy. My first 2 visits I was told to take some antibiotics. Took over a year for someone to find out what was going on. So you know you have something but you don't know what. I would encourage you to relax and wait until you get the results. It is tough but I determined to live my life as normal as I could until I received the biopsy results. If you have something it is not going to go away. If you don't you will waste a lot of energy worrying about nothing. Tough road but hang in the best you can. Keep us posted and know many have been through this and will guide you and advise you. Take the time to get your self in shape in case. You have some time use it to your advantage. Sorry you are here. [/quote]

Thank you for the sweet welcome and great advice, I appreciate both very much!

Hello Mich, and welcome! Very glad you fund the forum, everyone here is very supportive and knowledgeable.

I know how you are feeling,a lot of us here have been through something similar. The best advice I have heard is to try to stay busy and do a lot of things you enjoy till you know the biopsy results.

Here is to hoping it is benign, and good luck!

[quote=Ambra]Hello Mich, and welcome! Very glad you fund the forum, everyone here is very supportive and knowledgeable.

I know how you are feeling,a lot of us here have been through something similar. The best advice I have heard is to try to stay busy and do a lot of things you enjoy till you know the biopsy results.

Here is to hoping it is benign, and good luck! [/quote]

Hi there,

Thank you so much! I am going to keep myself real busy for sure, the anxiety will be better that way.

I appreciate your sweet post!

Take care,
Mich

[quote=Anne-Marie]Hi Mich - I know how you must be feeling. . . . but the only way to tell if it is oral cancer is with the biopsy. Waiting is so-o-o-o difficult so how about if you try to move up the appointment? Just call and tell them how worried you are and what it looks like. They can move appointments around to accommodate you. My son had a spot which grew into a purplish sore and he waited because he had no health insurance. Not all OC's have pain associated with it, but my son's SCC (Squamous Cell Cancer) was wrapped around a nerve and it became very painful. By the time he had the biopsy it was a Stage 2. So even if it's nothing serious, just being petrified about it is worth trying to get the appointment moved up. The earlier you go, the better you will feel and the best chance you have of a successful outcome. My son is now 7+ years cancer-free and doing just fine. Hoping the very best for you as well. [/quote]

Hi there,

Thank you so much for your sweet reply and for sharing about your son! It is wonderful to hear he is 7 years cancer free, that is terrific! Hope is a good thing to have so I thank you for giving me hope by sharing your son's story.

I begged them for a sooner appointment but sadly for me that was the absolute soonest appointment they had. I am on the cancelation list so if someone calls to cancel I will be offered that appointment. I hope someone does call to cancel so I can get in sooner.

Thank you again so much!

Take care,

Mich, waiting sucks, no 2 ways about it, but you're taking the right steps. Fingers crossed for you.

Mich,
Welcome! You have found a GREAT group for support here. Hopefully your tongue spot is nothing to worry about. Stay busy and the time will go by faster. I know that is easier said than done...but it is really the best way to meep your mind occupied. It's difficult...but doable. Hang in there. We are all with you with fingers and toes crossed.

Best of luck with everything.

[quote=tina77]Mich, waiting sucks, no 2 ways about it, but you're taking the right steps. Fingers crossed for you. [/quote]

Thank you so much Tina, I appreciate your kind words of support!

[quote=ChemTeacher]Mich,
Welcome! You have found a GREAT group for support here. Hopefully your tongue spot is nothing to worry about. Stay busy and the time will go by faster. I know that is easier said than done...but it is really the best way to meep your mind occupied. It's difficult...but doable. Hang in there. We are all with you with fingers and toes crossed. [/quote]

Hi there,

Thank you so much for your reply, I appreciate it! I am trying to keep busy and I am getting things done. I left the hotdogs out on the counter when making dinner and I meant to put them in the pan of water to boil them. I eventually got them where they needed to go, lol I was also making cobbler for dessert and I had 3 baking pans out and started filling all 3 when I just meant to work with 1 pan! I never do that. I am also much more accident prone because I have all of this on my mind, urgg Oh well, lol I have to laugh at myself to keep from crying.

Have a great night.

[quote=PaulB]Best of luck with everything. [/quote]

Thank you so much, I appreciate it!

Welcome to OCF! Try your best to stay busy to keep your mind from worrying about "what if". At this point you dont know whats going on yet. It could be anything, not just oral cancer. By staying busy and focusing on positive things it will help pass the time until your appointment. If you havent already done so, call the oral surgeons office and ask to be put on a cancellation list so you may have a shot at moving your appointment up. Even if the oral surgeon does a biopsy right there during your first appointment (most dont), it would be another week before the final results are in. Its alot of waiting which is really difficult when you are worried.

Hope it turns out to be nothing serious! Good luck!!!