Q. Does lymph node hardness and a feeling of something being lodged in my tongue indicate mouth cancer?

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I have replied to your queries in detail.

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Hello,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

Lymph node inflammation in the neck, tonsil patches, or nodes does not mean you have mouth cancer. However, because you are experiencing severe oral discomfort while eating and drinking (the pressing feeling you have in the throat ), that is a common symptom of many oral conditions called dysphagia. If your symptoms had aggravated after tooth extraction, then it might be complications of an unhealed extraction site or incorrect local anesthetic injection, both of which are possible.

I would advise you to stop smoking completely or at least reduce the number of cigarettes smoked daily. Smoking increases the risk of developing serious oral conditions that usually start from precancerous lesions. On the other hand, you might have an oral condition due to chronic smoking, which may not be cancerous but certainly painful.

I suggest you consult a maxillofacial surgeon to get your soft palate and tonsil examination done. You can either consult ENT (ear, nose, and throat) specialist or a maxillofacial surgeon. Just antibiotics cannot treat dysphagia; the underlying cause should be known. If a biopsy is needed in the clinic, the surgeon or ENT specialist will send a sample of the tissue or node. On analysis, you will know what kind of cells are there and the correct diagnosis. Your dentist will put you on local medications to ease dysphagia if it is benign (non-cancerous), a normal red or white lesion, or an unhealed extraction site. An unhealed extraction site or even TMJ (temporomandibular joint) problem can give you trismus because there is a recent history of wisdom tooth extraction. So please get the consistency of the lesion or tissue checked at the maxillofacial surgeon's clinic; if needed biopsy will be done. Or else they will prescribe the appropriate medication after manual diagnosis for dysphagia and trismus both.

I hope I was helpful to you.

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Hello,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

I read your query and understand your concern.

No need to get tensed. It would just be a red or white lesion, and it requires an in-depth physical examination. I reviewed the images you have attached (attachments removed to protect the patient's identity). But it is impossible to assess the full extent of the lesion in the picture. The possibility of a precancerous lesion is because you have a history of cigarette smoking.

I suggest you to consult a specialist doctor as early as possible and start the treatment.

Thank you.

Hello,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

I reviewed the images you have attached (attachments removed to protect the patient's identity). It looks like a red oral lesion at the junction of the soft palate and the tonsil. You have to get the consistency checked by a specialist doctor. I do not feel it would be cancerous or even precancerous by the appearance. However, I think you must visit a specialist doctor as soon as possible and get it examined. Meanwhile, you can do lukewarm salt water rinsing 6 to 7 times a day for a week to relieve dysphagia.

Thank you.

Hello,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

Do not be too anxious. The lesion does not look cancerous from your details and the attached images (attachments removed to protect the patient's identity). However, the incidence of precancer lesions in smokers is more, and there is a possibility. Therefore, consult your specialist doctor as early as possible.

Thank you.

Same symptoms doesn’t mean you have the same problem. Consult a doctor now!

Dr. Achanta Krishna Swaroop

Experience: 7 + Yrs

Dentistry

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