Michael.....you know that nobody can diagnose anything here, but you know what you have to do....and soon. You have a lot going on, and that's plenty of reason for your throat to be angry at you, but the lesion has me a little concerned. You asked for ideas, so here's mine: Call the ENT tomorrow and get an appointment for this week sometime. In the meantime, keep a good eye on that lesion, to see if it changes, for the better or the worse, so that you can report to the ENT. Keep us posted!