Michelle: Know how concerned you are and don't want to raise your fear level. But (you knew a but was coming, right) I was finally diagnosed in 10/03 with cancer of unknown origin due to lymph node lump of 3.5cm. Among other things, a tonsilectomy was performed 11/19/03 and the ENT said he looked at it and was sure no cancer was on either side. They sent it for biopsy just to be sure and ... cancer in right tonsil. Even with the tonsil in his hand, the ENT, a very experienced and trained guy, still couldn't see the tumor. FYI, it was 2.1cm. I would strongly suggest you get someone to get a tissue sample and biopsy the tonsil. I don't know if they can do it with a sonogram directed needle or if a snip is required, but whatever it takes if I were you I would insist on a biopsy. 2 years of sore throat is 23+ months too long in my opinion. Good luck. Regards, Kirk

Michelle:
My tonsil looked normal, too. But I had a sore throat for a month and what I thought was a swollen gland in my neck. I did not smoke and just turned 50. After a month of trying antibiotics and waiting to get into an ENT they finally did a tonsilectomy. The doctor thought chance of cancer was very remote because I did not fit the statistics. But it was and by the time they scheduled the neck dissection it had spread to 3 lymph nodes. You need to get another opinion. Second opinions are usually covered by insurance. And the pain of the tonsilectomy wasn't as bad as childbirth ...remember, you survived 4 of those!! Praying for you - Kris

I think you need to see a different ENT, oral surgeon or dental medicine specialist. Having the same person look at you over and over again with no diagnosis only indicates to me that this person, as good as his chair side manner may be doesn't know what he is looking at and has no plan to put into place to find out what the situation really is. IF.... IF this were something bad, in this amount of time you could have gone from a very treatable stage one to a hard to treat stage 4

My inital ulcer removal from the tongue wasn't expected to be cancerous. My oral surgeon joked I'd be the first hypnosis candidate to stop biting my tongue before finding out.

Once we found out it was cancer, I saw a zillion different doctors in Boston (arguably the medical meca of the world) and had a zillion tests. The physicals they gave me, the blood tests they gave me, the 3 MRI's they gave me, and the CT they gave me all came back negative for additional cancer. Since my initial excision didn't produce clean margins, the Dana Farber doctors wanted to go back in "just in case". They found another portion of the tumor - nearly 1 cm in diameter in my tongue.

My advice: GO TO DIFFERENT DOCTORS UNTIL THEY DIAGNOSE YOU PROPERLY. There's no way every doctor knows everything about every problem or disease. You are your only advocate in those offices. Demand attention, tests, and whatever it takes. Most of us aren't used to being rude and demanding; we feel as though "doctor knows best" and accept their explanations. They've gone through med-school and training - they'll have thick skin for your demands and second-guesses. If they don't, find someone else!

Go gettum!
Sabrina

Hi Michelle: I just wanted you to know that I realize how hard it can be to quit smoking, but keep trying. I just quit 2 weeks ago. I went for hypnosis and it really helped but in addition to that I watched my mom die from cancer recently. She was only diagnosed in February with pancreatic cancer (#1 cause is smoking) and she died April 16th, only 2 months after diagnosis.Maybe hypnosis would work for you too, keep trying you can do it.

Sharon

Okay, I still haven't been back to the ent, but am planning to go. Now my right side tonsil isn't sore anymore, but the left one is most of the time. It swells ocassionally, not much, but some and causes me discomfort. The last time I was at the ent the doc said it had some scar tissue in it, but that was it. He did a fairly thorough exam, and I did have scopes and stuff way back. It has been since february now that the left side has been bothering me. It just feels like something is in it. I have managed to get tonsil stones out of the right one on a regular basis and that really helps with the pain.
Now, the weird thing, sometimes the pain will go away completely for a week, two weeks, the longest period was three weeks with no pain. Does this happen with throat cancer? Can it just go away and come back again. Thanks to all who have answered me. My ent does not want to take my tonsils out, I am going to try to get into another ent, but it takes time where I am.
Thanks for any insight from anyone.
Take care and bless you all.

Almost two years out since the beginning of all this and a long time since the beginning of this thread. I just re read it all again, and it would appear that you have chosen to continue seeing the same doctor and not get other opinions from different types of specialists. Why would be my first question? As an observation only, you are two years into this. If this were cancer, you would be significantly worse today then when you first started talking about this. It would appear that you have some type of chronic condition that needs to be properly diagnosed and resolved, either through medication or tonsillectomy. After two years, the likelihood that this is a cancer is extremely low, though not impossible. Do yourself a favor and go to someplace new for a diagnosis, from a different specialist. Go to a university based dental/medical clinic. They will have a variety of doctors from different backgrounds that together will finally get to the bottom of this and get it taken care of. Living with it as is seems unwise.

Thank you, this is what I am in the process of doing. I am seeing a University/hospital specialist, they are all part and parcel. It has been difficult to get follow up appointments, let alone a different ent. I will keep trying though. It just worries me that it is now the other tonsil.
Again, thanks. I know everyone here is dealing with bigger issues than me right now.

Don't take that post in a negative way. I just wanted to be sure you were seeing someone that was going to finally get you the right answer and a solution to go with it. It sounds like you are on the right track now.

Mich4, I don't want to stir up anything, but if I were you, I would follow Brian's advice quickly. My first ENT did a scope search and needle biopsy and couldn't find any evidence of cancer in the tonsil or lymph node, though he did call it cancer from the start. He just couldn't prove it with any standard office test. He finally sent me to the hospital for a sonogram directed needle biopsy for the lymph node which came back positive for cancer. To try and find the primary site, he scheduled me for surgery and removed the tonsils and took samples from various other places. He has done lots of these checks and can easily recognize cancer. He looked at the tonsils after removal and could not see any sign of cancer, but sent them to the pathologist anyhow. Came back with a 2+ cm tumor, even after a direct examination could not detect it after removal. I would suggest immediate consultation with another specialist.