I am new to this and really shouldn't jump the gun as I haven't been to see a specialist yet. I went for my usual dental check up and the dentist said the teeth are great and I thought at first everything went well. Then he mentioned in the end that I had a very narrow palate and he couldn't view it properly. He is going to refer me (NHS) to a mouth surgeon or facial doctor. I of course didn't want to wait that long and he kept saying don't worry but I DO. So will go to my GP on Monday and get a private referral.

When I did my own check-up on my mouth, I found 5 white pimples in the back of the tongue and a lump on the left side of the palate. Why the dentist didn't mention this to me is puzzling. I am a light smoker and will quit promptly after this. I thought dentists do screening/scanning and then discuss it afterwards. I think he wanted to fob me off on someone else - I AM getting a new dentist after enduring this stress.

Welcome to OCF! Im sorry you are having such a hard time trying to get a diagnosis.

The golden rule around here is ... If you have a sore in your mouth that does not heal itself within 2-3 weeks, then it needs to be checked by a professional. By professional I mean an ear, nose and throat specialist (ENT) or an oral surgeon. Here in the US, dentists dont always do oral cancer (OC) screenings. Same goes for a family doctor. Many times dentists will concentrate only on the teeth, ignoring anything else in the mouth.

Im hoping you are planning on quitting tobacco immediately. Tobacco has many known cancer causing additives. There are hundreds of things in tobacco that can cause irritation of sensitive mouth tissue. By quitting immediately you are giving your mouth a chance to heal without being affected by all the irritants in tobacco and in its smoke. I know quitting isnt easy but if you are determined then you will succeed. After being diagnosed with OC, Ive quit cold turkey myself. It took me a little while for the light bulb to go on, realizing I had caused my own illness with my "bad habit". I was not a heavy smoker, after many years of smoking the damage was done.

The white bumps could be any number of things besides OC. Only thru a biopsy can the doctor tell for certain what you have in your mouth. This likely will take a few weeks until you know for sure what you are dealing with. Im hoping this will turn out to be nothing serious. But, if you are diagnosed with OC, we are here to help you with everything. Do yourself a huge favor and try not to get overly stressed out over the waiting or worrying about what the bumps could be. Stress will only make this harder and negatively impact your ability to heal.

Please keep us posted. Best wishes with everything!!!