It sounds like you may have some chronic infection, which could also involve your lymph nodes. Either way, while we would all like to help you here, the only real answer you are going to get is from another doctor who not only looks carefully at your mouth and throat, but takes swabs, does blood work, and if warrented uses other, perhaps imaging techniques to determine what's what. You need to get in to see someone. Regardless of bacterial or viral infections or the big C, you need an answer so that this can be resolved. We are unique individuals and your symptoms may or may not minic those of another persons disease. Even with similar symptoms, you could have very different causes.

Thank you,

I have a follow up with the ent on the 29th. That is the earliest time possible. I will quit smoking, you are right about being in denial.

My ent has done an xray, ultra sound and a ct. That was all done last october when my pain was quite bad. Nothing showed, had numerous bloodtests and I even asked for a biopsy. He said there wasn't anything to biopsy.
I guess I will know soon.

Thanks, Michelle I'm just very scared. I keep telling myself they said it was nothing sinister, but I just keep worrying and looking in my throat all day.
Thanks everyone and best wishes to you all.

Just an update. I was back at my ent last week, he just looked in my throat, not with the scope or anything. The pain is still there, but I did have two weeks with no pain at all not too long ago. He says it can't be cancer if the pain subsided for two weeks. I don't think he wants to do anymore tests. He doesn't want to take my tonsils out either. I'm a little frustrated, its hard to get a second opinion when I am going to one of the top ents at a teaching hospital. I just pray that if it were throat or tongue cancer that I would really know it now. It has been almost 15 months. I read the odd story where people have had it for that long and didn't know it until a lump popped out on their neck. I keep feeling my neck for lumps.
Thank you to all on this board. I wish my stepfather had this board when he went through his treatments. He is still cancer free, almost a year now!
Thanks again,
Michelle

Even the best can make a bad judgment call. This is not to say that he has, but we hear it so much on the board that someone missed this, or disregarded that, it gives you cause for pause so to speak, when you hear this again and again. Pain is a symptom not a disease. To have pain, there must exist a problem. The process of differential diagnosis is like a mystery; you have a clue, in your case pain, now you must run through all the possible reasons to determine the answer to the mystery of why it exists. Often times people are so accustomed to the predictable answer that they exclude the less obvious answers. Just because you have been seen by someone of some notoriety, does not mean that you shouldn't seek another opinion form a different doctor of perhaps a different discipline. The continuation of symptoms is a sign that should be followed up on. While this doctor may be celebrated for his expertise, he, like all of us can make a mistake. Second opinions are usually worth the effort... and you do not need a referral from him to go and get one. None of this means that the big C is in your life, but something is not right. As I said before, 15 months is a long time to live with a symptom that does not resolve. You need another opinion.

Hi Michelle:

The decision to remove tonsils in adults isn't usually made lightly because of the intense pain post-operatively as well as the slow recovery, problems resuming eating, and risk of bleeding with the surgery. Grown ups just don't bounce back the way kids do!On the flip side,the decision to do so is a quality of life issue as in how badly is the quality of your life being ipacted negatively by your current symptoms? It seems you are being impacted daily and feel stressed by the situation. If so, it is worth another opinion and considering the surgery for peace of mind and resolution to the symptoms.

Keep us posted,

Kim

hi michelle,
Iam 33 yrs old and have alot of your symptoms i have pain in my throat beginning of me throat and pain in neck and ear and the back of tongue and down further by the floor alittle bit it is all on my right side. I thoght i feel a lump in the neck i have been to ent oral surgeon that took a biopsy in the front of my tongue because i felt painit came back nothing i have been like this more then 2 years i dont have any tonsils they were taken out when i was youyng i dont know what to do myself had scopes down my throat at least 4 time doc dont see niothing am going now fora mri of the pharnax and larnyx .I would like to ask a guestion when they take an mri of the pharnyx and larynx do they get the back of tongue ,base of tongue does anybody know thanks joann

Hey Michelle, I understand your feeling frustrated when you know something isn't right and your doctor can't figure out just what it is. I have been having problems since this past July with an ulcer in my throat that one general practioner and my dentist saw, but two different oral surgeons couldn't see. They both did thorough exams too, and told me all they can see is "normal lymph tissue". In the meantime I have gotten two white spots on my tonsil too. Unlike you, I have never experienced pain, but I find myself looking into a mirror a dozen times a day and freaking out over it all. I will not give up until I get an answer that I am satisfied with. I was told the oral surgeons would do biopsies before I saw them, but after seeing me, they felt no need to do one, so I pressed on and now have an appt with an ENT doctor next tuesday. (the spots on my tonsil were not there when I saw the oral surgeons), so in my mind I imagine the worst, that maybe the ulcerated area I see IS cancer, and that it's now spread to my tonsil? I'm hoping and praying that this is all just my imagination going wild from NOT knowing? Actually, Ive had to reschedule the ENT appt two times, because my husband had to have surgery for a brain tumor this month. The waiting is horrible. I am 48 years old and was a heavy smoker and drinker for many years. I have a daughter who gets white spots on her tonsils too and her dentist told her they are food collecting in them and he was able to scrape them off, like you said you have done, but she has not had pain with them. When I saw one of the oral surgeons for my problem, he asked if I had my tonsils removed....which I haven't, but one of them somehow disentegrated (?) so I now only have one, which is the one with the white spots on it. My nephew somehow doesn't have either of his now, and he never had a tonsilectomy either. I hope you go for a second opinion and get an answer to your symptoms, I know how hard the NOT knowing is. Shelley

Hi Joannc, Your MRI will most likely include the area at the back of your tonge. To be sure, ask the people that will set up the MRI, they can tell you for sure. More than likely they will do most of your head and neck. I hope they find the cause of your pain and that it is something easy to take care of. My guess is it will not be cancer because you probably would have had more serious problems by now if it was.

Be sure you ask the doctors lots of questions and bring someone with to take notes.

Still having problems. It's been 20 months now. Believe it or not the pain in the right tonsil has been subsiding a bit, but now I have pain and a tiny bit of swelling in the left tonsil. I still worry but am going to try to get into the ent again. I went to see him about 3 months ago, everything fine he said. Now I have a bump on my gum behind my last molar on the left side. It hurts a bit, is whitish in colour and looks like a pimple but doesn't want to pop. I am still worried about cancer and feel so selfish because of what all of you are going through and have been through. The anxiety is killing me.

Thank you all for responding to me.

ANyone, I'm still dealing with this sore throat. I go to the ent on the 31st again, but I know they won't find anything. Everything still looks the same. Just these stupid tonsil stones. It's been almost 2 years now.
Thanks to all of you brave people. I wish my stepfather could come on here and read these things.