Hi,

I'm so glad I finally found this forum...have been searching the internet for days now. I've had a sore throat with pain radiating down into the right side of my chest for going on 5 months now. I went to my ENT 6 weeks ago and he diagnosed it as reflux and put me on med. I went for return appt last week with little symptom relief.

He did a scope down my nose and found a mass on my right lingual tonsil. I asked if it could be cancer and he said there was a possibility. He ordered an MRI of my neck. Initially I was not too concerned as I read that reflux can irritate tonsils, but my concern is that it is unilateral. He said that it is fairly large and my referred pain could be that my epiglottis is getting caught up in the mass.

I had my MRI yesterday and have to wait for results until next Monday, dr is out of town. I'm trying to keep busy, but find myself doing way too much reading on internet. I know no one can give me answers, but guess I just needed to post this to someone who has been in my shoes. Thanks for listening.

Shannon~

You shouldn't have to wait for a week those results should be available in the next day or two your family dr. Should be able to access the results sooner if the ENT is out of town. Sorry you have to be here but it's a great place for support and information. Try not to worry. An MRI can light up many things (inflammation, scar tissue etc.. Even a benign growth ) ...usually a biopsy is a good thing to have since it's definitive. Push for one so you get an answer ASAP! Please keep us posted.. take care!

My brother came down with the same thing. It ended up being inflamation from acid reflux.

When my ex-husband went to his new ENT, he was diagnosed with acid reflux. The ENT noticed that the irritation was on one side. He asked my husband if he slept on his side, and if so, which one. The irritation was on the same side he slept on.

Thank you all for your support and experience. I hope and pray that this is from reflux. It's strange that I have no heartburn and feel no acid, but I have heard that is not always the case with reflux. My Dad always had chronic heartburn and had esophageal cancer, but is a cancer survivor!!! Mom had breast cancer and my sister died 4 years ago of colon cancer. So it's always a concern for me.

Sandy, so sorry your ex-husband had to go through all of that. Did he have a mass? I do sleep on the side the mass is on, but can't sleep on my side for very long due to chronic back problems. I usually end up on my back.

After reading many posts, I am amazed at the courage, determination and strength you show. What a wonderful forum I have found. Thank you.

Hi Shannon,

Thank you. Nope, no mass--just some irritation. But, that was after the tonsillectomy. He chronically clears his throat and has done so for years--which was his only symptom. Actually, at one point I used echolocation to determine his position in the grocery store. Absolutely true. (Any other resemblance between me and bats is strickly coincidental--despite his opinions to the contrary.) He's taking Prevacid which seems to have calmed his reflux and he doesn't make that noise very much anymore. Thank. Good. Ness. He seems to have better luck when he avoids eating late in the evening...and remembers to TAKE the Prevacid.

I hope that you get an "all clear" on your test results.

Congratulations to your dad and mom for being survivors!

Hi Shannon!

I agree with Cheryl and ask for a biopsy. I hope you get some answers soon, waiting is so hard. Maybe try giving a call into the doctors office and explain that you really want to know the results and IF there is a possiblity of it being cancer, you'd rather get things going so more time doesn't elapse.

Good Luck!

LOL Sandy, that's too funny. ESikon you are right that the waiting is really hard. I've always been one to want to know what I'm facing and then I can deal with it. Waiting is torture. I have thought of calling his office and asking his nurse for the results, but feel like that will leave me with alot of questions she won't be able to answer. He said we would sit down and look at the results together on Monday. I'm more comfortable with that and if anything shows up I will definitely ask for a biopsy.

Is an MRI as effective as a CT scan? The MRI was done with contrast. Take care all!