Hi Everyone,
I went to see an ENT earlier this week about a sensitive 1cm lesion on the underside of my tongue (have had it for 8 months). My father (a family doctor) numbed and removed it in December and has since grown back to 1cm. The ENT suspected it is just a granuloma but wants to get it removed and sent to pathology to make sure (my father was concerned it could be a papiloma or something else involving HPV). The lesion is easily accessible (just on the underside of my tongue), so I thought it would be a simple procedure to biopsy. The ENT wanted to schedule me to an ambulatory surgery center and put me under general anesthesia to perform the surgery. I was expecting local anesthesia and a few incisions, plus maybe a stitch or two. Does this seem unnecessary? The finance department called today and said the cost of the procedure was $15,000! What have other people paid for tongue biopsies? Luckily I have good insurance (will pay ~$2000 out of pocket), but I'm a student, so thats a good deal of money to me. Is it worth getting a second opinion to see if someone can do the biopsy in house under local anesthesia? Other people on this forum have quoted biopsies for less that $500 (http://oralcancersupport.org/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=124535 is an example). Is that out of pocket or total cost? I realize that good health is worth the money, but I also need to be financially smart at this point in my life. Thanks to all for your opinions.