Health scare

[American1776]

I'm 35 yrs/o, with a 4 yr/o daughter who's the world to me.

January, I got strep throat. Very sick, missed a week of work, took the zpack and that was that. Although my throat never fully recovered.

Since January, my throat hurt off and on. I began to look in there with a flashlight, and started to notice my left tonsil grow a little over time. Then I could feel it when I swallowed. Then I found a bump/lesion on the back wall of my throat. It is red, with a white center. Over a period of 6 weeks, the panic grew. This looks like a squamous cell cancer.

I went to my PCP, (they always give me a PA instead of an MD). The girl (looks fresh out of PA school) looks in my throat for a second, then tells me I have pharingitis. Do some blood work, throat cultures, nothing remarkable.

I decide to go to a specialist ENT. Now I really think this is serious. I research all the types of oropharygeal cancer there is, and most of the prognoses are bad.

Today i went to the ENT. Scared out of my wits. He listens to my issues and concerns, looks in my ears and throat, then takes a long thin tube with a light and camera and sticks it down my throat.

He declares that it's red and irritated, but he sees nothing that looks like cancer. I ask him about the lesion/bump, and he says it's inflammed lymph tissue from the irritation. I probably have acid reflux, and he prescribed tablets for me to take 2x day.

To those who are going through health problems, I sincerely wish you well. Having a health scare is bad enough.

Thanks for listening.

 

[Hillbilly77]

I had a health scare years ago.

I had a lump on the side of my neck. Over the course of a couple months it got considerably bigger. When I finally went to a doctor he said that it required surgery. He gave me a local anesthetic instead of putting me under. When he opened it up he told me it was a lymph node. He asked me if I was a tobacco user.
I smoked a carton per week & used chewing tobacco/dip while I was at work and smoking wasn't convenient.

He didn't elaborate on his tobacco question. He sent the lymph node for a biopsy and sent me home. It took a week for the result to come back.

That was the longest week of my life, waiting for those test results. I had 2 little girls and a wife at home and I am the breadwinner.
My daughters were 4 and 1 at the time. All of the scary "What ifs..." were running through my mind all week.

Luckily, when I got the call a week later, the news came that it was just an infection and no further action was needed.

It scared me so bad that I quit smoking & chewing right then.

It's coming up on 10 years in May.

 

[American1776]

Hillbilly77:

Thanks for sharing that. I felt the same way with my young daughter. The fear was overwhelming thinking about my daughter.

I'm glad that your situation wasn't serious. A lump that persists in the neck is one of the first signs of oral/pharynx cancer, and it usually indicates at least stage 2. Scary stuff.

Good to hear you quit the tobacco. I never picked up the habit, but I did drink quite a bit (off and on) whilst in college, grad school, and after my daughter was born. I'd go a month or two drinking pretty heavily, then stop for months and months.

I'm done with drinking all together now. Being a parent puts the world in a whole different perspective.

 

[snubbyfan]

Reminds me of when my neurologist gave me an initial diagnosis of ALS. Yeah, let that sink in.....
All I could think of was 3 to 5 years of a horrible lingering death as my body shut down 'til I couldn't breath or swallow.
He ordered more tests and said he'll have the results for me in 6 months.
Longest 6 months ever.
Turned out to be something similar that only affects the lower motor nerves. Hands, feet, arms and legs. It's incurable and untreatable but at least I live a normal life span.
Right now with regular exercise and a nutritious diet I'm able to keep mobile.

 

[American1776]

Reminds me of when my neurologist gave me an initial diagnosis of ALS. Yeah, let that sink in.....
All I could think of was 3 to 5 years of a horrible lingering death as my body shut down 'til I couldn't breath or swallow.
He ordered more tests and said he'll have the results for me in 6 months.
Longest 6 months ever.
Turned out to be something similar that only affects the lower motor nerves. Hands, feet, arms and legs. It's incurable and untreatable but at least I live a normal life span.
Right now with regular exercise and a nutritious diet I'm able to keep mobile.

That's horrifying. I'm glad you don't have ALS, and that you can manage your symptoms. My friend's wife recently passed away from ALS. Truly heartbreaking.

 

[hsguy]

I'm 35 yrs/o, with a 4 yr/o daughter who's the world to me.

January, I got strep throat. Very sick, missed a week of work, took the zpack and that was that. Although my throat never fully recovered.

Since January, my throat hurt off and on. I began to look in there with a flashlight, and started to notice my left tonsil grow a little over time. Then I could feel it when I swallowed. Then I found a bump/lesion on the back wall of my throat. It is red, with a white center. Over a period of 6 weeks, the panic grew. This looks like a squamous cell cancer.

I went to my PCP, (they always give me a PA instead of an MD). The girl (looks fresh out of PA school) looks in my throat for a second, then tells me I have pharingitis. Do some blood work, throat cultures, nothing remarkable.

I decide to go to a specialist ENT. Now I really think this is serious. I research all the types of oropharygeal cancer there is, and most of the prognoses are bad.

Today i went to the ENT. Scared out of my wits. He listens to my issues and concerns, looks in my ears and throat, then takes a long thin tube with a light and camera and sticks it down my throat.

He declares that it's red and irritated, but he sees nothing that looks like cancer. I ask him about the lesion/bump, and he says it's inflammed lymph tissue from the irritation. I probably have acid reflux, and he prescribed tablets for me to take 2x day.

To those who are going through health problems, I sincerely wish you well. Having a health scare is bad enough.

Thanks for listening.

As I replied in another post, if you have health concerns consult a professional or a professional website. Dr.Google usually leads to a death sentence in a few clicks. Glad you are fine and received good news.

 

[Golddollar]

Reminds me of when my neurologist gave me an initial diagnosis of ALS. Yeah, let that sink in.....
All I could think of was 3 to 5 years of a horrible lingering death as my body shut down 'til I couldn't breath or swallow./QUOTE]

After an initial bout with rheumatoid arthritis, my mother was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's Disease (ALS) in 1987. I'll never forget how broken up my dad was when he called me with the news. She ended up 90-95% paralyzed from the muscular weakness that set in. When she passed in 1991, I remember the minister saying that Mom had been released from the prison her body had become. Glad to hear that what has afflicted you allows you to maintain a fairly normal life without the spectre of a terminal illness.

 

[susieqz]

snub, we love you for your fighting spirit.

 

[rwsmith]

A lesion like that ain't normal.......

..and I commend you for pursuing it to get a good answer and a solution. Our family practice had a clinic that we used to go to late or on weekends and the doctors were good. Over the years it has changed. You NEVER see an MD. The last few times someone in my family has problems I told them to go anywhere else because they always gave minimum care, what I called a 'Band Aid' and said to follow up with the doctor. Might as well go and get some REAL care that will fix it from the start instead of delaying treatment. I'm not being too bitter. They are good for some things and run a good many tests, but when the diagnosis gets tough they default to the Band Aid.