Hello,

My name is Tanya. I am a 57 year old woman, smoker since I was 15. I have done my share of drinking. I was a weekend beer drinker, never drank the hard stuff or daily but I did drink enough. I have rarely drank in the past 10 years. I would estimate I drink a couple beers once a month in the past 10 years. I have taken a daily water pill for HBP for the past 14 years and pain meds for herniated discs as needed. Both of these meds cause my mouth to be very dry.

Last January 2015 I had an adenoma removed from a left superior hyper-parathyroid gland. Within weeks of the surgery I would get small food particles caught in my throat. My ENT who I visited last Thursday called it oropharyngeal dysphagia. Nothing I did made it this food go down. I recently found if I gag myself sometimes it will come out. I asked my surgeon twice about it, once in February and again in June. Both times she said it was probably scar tissue and I should have been aggressively massaging my neck after surgery. The food getting stuck only happened occasionally and I thought it was a side effect of the surgery so I didn't worry too much about it. I also had 2 ultrasounds, Sestamibi parathyroid scan, and CT scan of my neck right before the surgery so I figured if it was anything else it would have been spotted then. I have also been diagnosed with multiple benign nodules on my thyroid.

Fast forward to 2 weeks ago. I had just come off from a round of prednisone and antibiotics and this condition began happening every time I ate. My breakfast is stuck there as I type. I also want to mention this was my 10th round of prednisone and 8th round of antibiotics in the past 6 months due to bronchial issues that my pulmonologist can't figure out. My 2 spirometry tests showed no COPD. His only conclusion was I could have asthma which I never had before. When I looked on my insurance website the other day and realized how many antibiotics and prednisone I have taken in the last 6 months I couldn't believe it. I also had a cortisone injection in between these prescriptions.

Along with the food getting stuck in the back of my throat I have had excessive, thick mucus from postnasal drip. The mucus is also sticking in my throat at the same place the food sticks. I have also had heartburn and chest pain. When I drink cold liquids I can feel how slowly they go down my esophagus. I called my surgeon to ask her if the food sticking could still be from scar tissue from the surgery. Again she told me I should have aggressively massaged the area but she didn't think it could be from the surgery and I should see an ENT. I already had an appointment with an ENT.

The ENT put a scope down my nose and said my esophagus was very, very swollen. She said she didn't see any masses and didn't think it was cancer. She said the swelling was from reflux and put me on Zantac. She said because of the swelling she couldn't see the area where my food was sticking and said it might be a pocket. She also said it was probably from the reflux. I thought it was odd that she said it might be a pocket before she said the reflux could cause it and it was only after I questioned the pocket further. She scheduled me for a barium swallow and a modified barium swallow. I have never had either one of the tests. The barium swallow is tomorrow and the MBS is on Thursday.

Since this condition has become chronic I have spent hours and hours researching it. I know Zenker's Diverticula (pockets) are very rare and I am also not seeing much about food sticking in this area due to reflux. There are very few reasons for oropharyngeal dysphagia that could apply to me other than a tumor. I have read that oropharyngeal candidiasis can cause this type of dysphagia from overuse of antibiotics and prednisone but I think this is a long shot. Just this week I have also twice had jaw pain when I chewed. Since my surgery I have had a lot of muscle cramping and tingling but I don't think they are related.

I know I shouldn't but after extensive research I have almost resigned myself to the fact that I have cancer. I am leaning toward cancer of the base of my tongue. Can anyone tell me if they had these symptoms and if so what was your diagnosis. You can tell me not to worry until I get the test results but that's not going to happen. I have never been so afraid of anything in my life.

Thanks you in advance.
Tanya

Welcome to OCF. Im sorry to read about your many health problems. I hope once all the tests come back that you do not have oral cancer (OC). Many OC patients do not have any symptoms which is why they are not diagnosed until its in its later stages. Some experience only a mild ear ache or sore throat. Please do yourself a favor and avoid diagnosing yourself over the internet. "Dr Google" will come up with all kinds of possibilities when putting in random symptoms. This will only cause you more stress which doesnt help you at all.

Hang in there and take the tests one by one until you get to the bottom of whats going on. Hopefully, you wont need our group but if you do you are in a very good place for help.

Good luck!!!!


PS... Helpful info about being diagnosed from the main OCF site

Thank you for your reply, Christine. It's too late to avoid diagnosing myself with Dr. Google. That is all I have been doing for the past week. It's funny, other than the food sticking in my throat and the postnasal drip I felt great. I had a lot of energy and was on top of my game at work. Now I'm feeling aches and pains and lumps and bumps everywhere on my body. I'm a mess. I'm hoping too I don't have to be a regular on this forum but wish everyone on here the absolute best and will pray for you all to be able to rid yourself or your loved one of this cancer. No matter what I will let you know what I find out. Say a little prayer for me.