I was wondering if anyone here can shed light on this for me.. I know you're not all doctors, but I'm sure most of the patients here are far more knowledgable than most doctors about oral cancer anyway.
at 30 yrs old, I started getting tonsillitis (3-4 times in one year). After my fourth infection, I decided not to take antibiotics. it kinda went away but i started noticing as I moved my neck, I'd feel something slide across my throat. I got concerned and went to the doc. he gave me antibiotics, but i pressed him and really wanted him to look further. he prescribed a blood test and a CT scan with contrast. blood test showed EBV (at .8) and CT scan showed a thyroid nodule of "about 1cm". Radiologist recommended following up if I was having other problems.. I was, so the ENT ordered an ultrasound. Ultrasound found the nodule and said it was .5mm (1/2 cm). Then ENT sent me to a surgeon to look into it further. both ENT and surgeon scoped my mouth and throat. Surgeon said he'd like to "keep an eye on it", but didn't recommend any more testing.
Now my symptoms, I sometimes feel like my tongue is being pulled back. I also still feel something move across my throat when i move my head.(nodes?) I also feel like I swallowed sawdust, or have been yelling a lot . (allergies?)
So the big question is, do I leave it be or follow up some more. Can a CT scan miss something? I've gone to a dentist and got a velscope scan, a GP, an ENT, and a surgeon. full blood work, CT scan, and ultrasound. so I keep following up or forget it. I hate not having an answer because i feel like so many people were told it's "nothing", only to find out it's something.

30 yr old male, non-smoker, drank alot of 5-7 years (mostly wine), stopped now,

If you are worried, seeking out another ENTs opinion couldnt hurt. Did any of the doctors tell you what they thought the lump was? The only way to tell for sure if its cancer is thru a biopsy.

My fine needle biopsy came back false negative. A tissue biopsy is accurate.

they think the lump is the thyroid nodule. the docs jammed their fingers in my neck but couldn't feel it.. i think my main question is, how accurate is a CT scan? it seems almost everyone was told "it's nothing" or had a false negative before it was discovered.

Ray,

A CT is a digital scan of your body. It cannot help but be 100% accurate. Reading and interpreting the scan, though, is done by a human. If you're not convinced that your concerns are being addressed, you can always seek out a second or third reading of your CT images.

Ray, every time I had cancer it was not brushed off. Unfortunately it does happen to some people. My family doc is the one who first suggested to me that I may have cancer. There are a few bad medical professionals just like a few bad ones in any situation. I like to think of all the exceptional doctors and nurses that I have had the pleasure of being their patient.