Hi penny... Welcome sorry you have to be here !! Hopefully its nothing but i would have your mouth thoroughly checked out by an ENT who deals with oral cancer - as Christine said. Okay I'm going to kind of go against the grain here - and say my experience with oral cancer was similar to what you are describing - I'm not a smoker by the way but I too had a reddened area under my tongue next to a molar that was in fact painful. Moreso when I ate certain foods - but it hurt! And it was cancer. Maybe because it was on my tongue, or maybe because it was a mass growing inside my tongue but it did hurt. Most cancer is painless, but not all. I don't want to scare you and Christine is right again in that it could be an infection or something else but it's been there long enough that you need an answer and don't stop until you get one. On the plus side bilateral involvement is highly unusual, usually that's indicative of something else (along with many of the other symptoms...) I'm surprised that you have masses in your neck yet the ENT couldnt palpate them I would definitely see someone else. It isn't cancer til a biopsy says it is so try not to worry. But do push until you know the cause. I too thought my issue was molar related and it very well may have been in the beginning but 4 yrs and 2 biopsies later it was finally I diagnosed as cancer. Good luck and let us knw what happens... And I swear I'm not a Debbie downer, I just like to do the better safe than sorry thng!